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Entomologist’s 
Record 


AND JOURNAL OF VARIATION 


EDITED BY 
J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT, F.R.E.S. 


Vol. 92 
1980 


— 


| 


ili 


CONTENTS 1980 


Acronycta rumicis L. Knotgrass. A 
Dwarf P. O. Winter, 54 


_ Aethes beatricella (Wals.) A Northern 


| 
| 


British Moth? 


Record of  P. Sokoloff, 234 

Agonopteryx scopariella (Heine- 
mann) in Kent. NV. F. Heal, 191 

Agrius convolvuli L. in Sussex. The 
Convolvulus Hawkmoth. R. 
Pickering, 196 

Agrotis exclamationis L. (Heart and 
Dart) in March M. Elvidge, 179 

Agrotis puta (Huebner) in Cumbria. 
N. L. Birkett, 8 

Anthocharis cardamines L. in Cumbria 
J. H. Vine-Hall, 23 

Apatura iris L. Observations on A. J. 
Showler, 24 

Apology. An E. H. Wild, 12 

Aquatic Insects. A. Wootton, 227 

Argynnis paphia L. and _ Limenitis 
camilla L. in the New Forest in 
1941/42 J. N. Marcon, 277 

Argyrocupha malagrida  (Wallengren) 
(Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) from 
the Western Cape Province. A New 
Race om. GaG Dicksonmand. 
W. H. Henning, 297 

Ashurst, Hampshire in 1979. Notable 
Moth species at 
JAGA. Craik, 51 

Audio Mimicry in Moths ? 
A. C. Morton, 75 

Badonnelia titei Pearman (Psocoptera: 
Sphaeropsocidae) in Huntingdon- 
shire. A Second British Record of 
R. C. Welch, and R. A. Plant, 123 

Biston herefordi ( betularia x _ stria- 
taria) The Kettlewell 1974 Hybrids. 
A Report Sir C. Clarke, 70 


Blair’s Shoulderknot in Cornwall. C. 
Hart, 118 

Blue Moons and Brimstones. C. F. 
Cowan, 74 

Book Talk Three J. M. Chalmers-Hunt, 
239 


Brief Encounter; How a Dragonfly made 
our day. C. F. Cowan, 282 

What is a A. A. Allen, 
ey) 

Butterfly Hunte:. Further Reminiscences 
of a J. A. Marcon, 34 

Camberwell Beauty in Spain. The H. G. 
Phelps, 196 

Canna in 1980. Early Occurrence of 
Lepidoptera on the Isle of J. L. 
Campbell, 198 

Canna List. Addition to 
Campbell, 238 


the: ie. 


Cardui Invasion. The J. R. Miller, 228 . 


Cheilosia paganus and C. _ fraterna 
(Dipt.: Syrphidae), The Rearing of 
A. E. Stubbs, 114 


Callimorpha dominula (L.) Scarlet Tiger 
in South Cumbria. N.L. Birkett, 85 
Caloptilia semifascia (Haworth) in Kent. 


N. F. Heal, 87 
Cataplectica farreni (Wals.) (Lep.: 
Epermeniidae) at Mushalls, Kin- 


cardineshire. P. D. Hulme, 171 

Catopsilia florella F.: Larval coloration. 
D. G. Sevastopulo, 166 

Cercyon granaris Erichson (Col.: Hydro- 
phyllidae) Confirmed as British. 
J, A. Parry, 211 

Changes since 1900 in the Distribution 
of Butterflies in Yorkshire and 
Elsewhere in the North of England. 
S. M. Jackson, 139 

Clostera anachoreta D. & S. Some Obser- 
vations on the Scarce Chocolate-Tip; 
K. G. W. Evans, 253 

Chrysodeixis chalcites (Esper) (Lep.: 
Noctuidae/Plusiinae) and an account 
of the Breeding Techniques Used. 
The Life Cycle of D.R. Stephenson, 
157 

Chrysogaster Species (Dipt.: Syrphidae) 
Known in Great Britain and Ireland. 
The M. C. D. Speight, 145 

Clostera curtula L. in Scotland. The 
Chocolate-Tip P. Marren, 154 

(Cly tus arietis (L.)). Overwintering Wasp- 
Beetle A. Wootton, 190 

Cnaemidophorus rhododactyla (Denis & 
Schiff.) in Hampshire. J. D. Chadd, 


102 

Cockroaches (Dictuoptera, Blattodea, 
Nauphoetidae). Names _ involving 
the Madeira and Surinam K. Mc E. 
Kevan, 77 

Coleophora adjectella WHerrich-Shidffer 


1861 (Lepidoptera: Coleophoridae) 
A Species Newly Recognised as 
British. A. M. Emmet, 129 

Coleophora albicosta (Haworth 1828) 
(Lep.: Coleophoridae) — An 
Anomalous Life History for a 
Coleophorid Larva. K. P. Bland, 61 

Coleophora lassella Staud. in Kent E. S. 
Bradford, 121 

Coleophora milvipennis Group. Further 
Observations on the A. Archer-Lock, 
266 

Coleophora prunifoliae Doets. in 1980. 
M. Hadley, 282 

Coleophora prunifoliae Doets. (Lep.: 
Coleophoridae) A Species New to 
Britain and a Consideration of 
C. cerasivorella Packard and 
C. coracipennella (Huebner) R. 
Heckford, 201 

Coleophora  siccifolia Stainton. The 
Larval Feeding of A. M. Emmet, 
220 


Coleophora trigeminella (Fuchs) N. F. 
Heal, 113 

Colias croceus Geof. in Cornwall. The 
Clouded Yellow B. Chesney, 246 

Correction. P. 43, 192 

Crete, 1979, M. W. Cooper, and C. I. 
Rutherford, 239 

Cucullia argentia (Hufn.) in Britain. An 
unconfirmed report of the Silver 
Spangled Shark J. D. Wallace, 7 

Curculionidae (Coleoptera) from Cum- 
bria_ collected in 1979. Some 
Records of R. W. J. Read, 
176 

Cynthia cardui L., Aglais urticae L. and 
Vanessa atalanta L. in South Devon 
H. L. O’Heffernan, 258 

(Cynthia cardui L.) Behaviour of Painted 
Lady A. Archer-Lock, 87 

(Cynthia cardui L.) in numbers at light, 
and other Notes on its occurrence 
near Filey. The Painted Lady. 
P.Q. Winter, 303 

Day-Flying Lepidoptera at Mercury 
Vapour Light. J. R. Langmaid, 
276 

Deilephila elpenor L.in Central Scotland. 
I. MacGOWAN, 124 

Deltote bankiana F.: in Essex. The Silver 
Barred: J. B. Fisher, 210 

Deltote bankiana ¥.: Silver Barred (Lep.: 
Noctuidae) in Kent. A. F. Foster, 
I$) 

Depressaria emeritella Stainton (Lep.: 
Oecophoridae) B. J. Lempke, 25 

Dermaptera from the Grunong Mulu 
National Park, Borneo. A. Brindle, 
172 

Diachrysia orichalcia F.: The Slender 
Burnished Brass A. S. Harmer, 
200 


Digitivalva perlepidella (Stainton) WN. F. 
Heal, 97 

Donaciinae (Col.: Chrysomelidae); A 
Postscript A.A. Allen, 152 

Donaciinae (Col.: Chrysomelidae), with 
a List of Recent East Kentish 
Localities Known to the Author. 
Notes on the J. A. Parry, 9 

Earwig’s Multiple Egg-Brood A.Wootton, 
183 


East Anglian Beetles. Notes on Some 
R. Crossley, 247 

Ectoedemia argentipedella (Zeller) The 
Pupation Requirements of A. M. 
Emmet, 69 

Ectoedemia subbimaculella (Haw.) in 
Berkshire (VC 22) P. J. Johnson, 
By 

Emus hirtus L. (Col.: Staphylinidae) A 
Few Further Remarks on A. A. 
Allen, 50 


Endangered Lepidoptera. In Support of 
the Re-introduction and Super- 
vision of Certain L. McLeod, 
221 

Ennomos fuscantaria Haworth, Unusual 


Foodplant of G. M. Haggett, 
97 
Entomological Cabinets. A. S. Harmer, 


Ephestia kuehniella Zeller (Lep.: Pyra- 
lidae). Mating Behaviour of P. J. 
Johnson, 259 

Epichoristodes acerbella Walker (Lep.: 
Tortricidae) First Capture of the 
Imago at large in Britain A. A. 
Allen, 33 

Epping Forest D. G. Sevastopulo, 151 

Eriogaster lanestris L.: Small Eggar 
(Lep.: Lasiocampidae). Further 
Notes on the Larval Habits of 
R. W. Watson, 193 

Essex. Almost Anywhere — Rather than 
A.M. Emmet, 27 

Ethmia  bipunctella (Fabr.) in the 
Rochester District A. G. J. Butcher, 
168 

Ethmia funerella F. Larvae on Myosotis 
R. G. Warren, 257 

Eublemma parva Hbn. in Hampshire. 
The Small Marbled J. R. Langmaid, 
260 

Eumichtis lichenea (Huebner). A Late 
Date for J. Briggs, 46 

(Eupithecia abietaria Goeze) Further 
Records. The Cloaked Pug) J. M. 
Chalmers-Hunt, 25 

Eupithecia millefoliata Rossl.: A Cor- 
rection A. A. Allen, 190 

Eupithecia phoeniceata Rambur at Ald- 
wick Bay, West Sussex. Observations 
on the Cyprus Pug R. R. Pickering, 
274 


Eupithecia pusillata D. & S. (sobrinata 
Hbn.) Away from Natural Juniper 
G. M. Haggett, 144 

Eurrhypara perlucidalis (Hbn.) in Kent. 
A Third Record of A. Archer-Lock, 
87 

Eurrhypara perlucidalis Hbn. (Lep.: 
Pyralidae) in Essex A. J. Dewick, 
154 

Extatosoma tiaratum (Mac Leay). Con- 
tribution to the Knowledge of 
Phasmida III. Diapause in the 
Eggs of U. Carlberg, 180 

Folklore of the Lepidoptera. The G. F. 
Le Pard, 270 

Freezing Insects for Storage. Further 
Observations on R. S. Wilkinson, 
273 

Gainsborough’s Mistake P. C. Hawker, 
279 


Gibraltar and Morocco 1979. W. J. 
Tennent, 206 

Gonepteryx rhamni L.: Some Obser- 
vations on the Brimstone Butter- 
fly C.J. Tubb, 194 

Hazards of Butterfly Collecting. Nigeria 
T. B. Larsen, 86 

Heath and Robinson Moth Traps. A 
Comparison of the P. Waring. 
283 

Heliothis peltigera D. & S. and Rhyacia 
simulans Hufnagel at Portland, 
Dorset. R. Chaterlain, 193 

Helops caeruleus L. (Col.: Tenebrioni- 
dae). Notes on A. A. Allen, 275 

Hippotion celerio L. in Yorkshire. 
The Silver Striped Hawkmoth. 
P. Q. Winter, 200 

Holly Blue. Raspberry as a Natural 
Pabulum of the H. E. Chipperfield, 
153 

Homoeosoma Curtis (Lepidoptera: Phy- 
citinae) from North India. A New 
Species of H. S. Rose, and 
S. S. Dhillon, 184 

Horisme aquata Huebner (Cumbrian 
Umber) A. G. Long, 152 

Hydroptilia occulta (Eaton) (Trichoptera: 
Hudroptilidae), a Caddis Fly New 
to Ireland, with Notes on Ay- 
droptilia martini Marshall J. P. 
O’Connor, and M. A. O'Connor, 
167 

Hyles lineata livornica Esper in Kent. 
J. E. Owen, 192 

Hyles lineata livornica Esper in South 
Devon. The Striped Hawkmoth 
H. L. O’Heffernan, 192 

Immigrants in Sussex. Early R. F. 
Bretherton, 144 

Immigration of Lepidoptera to the 
British Isles in 1978: A Sup- 
plementary Note. The R. F. 
Bretherton, and J. M. Chalmers- 
Hunt, 62 

Immigration of Lepidoptera to the 
British Isles in 1979. The R. F. 
Bretherton, and Chalmers-Hunt, 89 


Isle of Man 1980. Notes on Lepidoptera 
in the J. Hzdges, 303 

Kentish Glory, Speculative Notes on the 
P. Marran, 235 

Ladoga camilla L.: On the Ovipositing 
Habits of the White Admiral 
A. S. Harmer, 197 

Lampronia flavimitrella Huebner (Lep.: 
Incurvariidae). A Second British 
eee of J. M. Chalmers-Hunt, 
195 

Lasiopogon cinctus (Fab.) (Dipt.: Asili- 
dae) in South Cumbria. N. 
Birkett, 50 


Lasius fuliginosus (Latreille) (Hymenop- 
tera Formicidae) in Buckingham- 
shire. A. Wootton, 160 

Leptophloeus clematidis (Erichson) (Col.: 
Cucujidae) Discovered in Suffolk. 
D.R. Nash, 120 

Lithophane ornitopus Hufnagel. Grey 
Shoulder Knot in North Wales. 
G. E. Higgs, 53 

Lulworth Skipper. Insects from Cornwall 
Including Apparently the First 
Cornish B. J. Lempke, 189 

Luminous Centipedes. 7: D. Fearnehough, 
53 


Lycia zonaria (D. & S.) (Lepidoptera 
Geometridae) on Coll, Inner 
Hebrides. R. C. Welch, 259 

Lysandra bellargus Rott. in the Chilterns. 
The Reappearance of A.J. Showler, 
199 

Lysandra corydon L. in Lincolnshire. 
Notes on the Apparent Extinction 
of the Chalk Hill Blue, P. Hawker, 
22 

Macroglossum stellatarum L. in Scotland. 
The Humming Bird Hawkmoth: A. 
F. Johnston, 194 

Macroglossum stellatarum L. in South 
Devon. The Humming Bird Hawk- 
moth: A. L. O’Heffernan, 194 

Maniola jurtina L. Related to M. Jurtina 
ab. postaurolancia Leeds. A New 
Form of C. G. Lipscomb, 205 

Maniola telmessia Zeller on Angistri 
Island, Greece. About the Reported 
Occurrence of J. G. Coutsis, 197 

Maruca testulalis (Geyer) in Wanstead 
Park A. M. Emmet, 113 

Meathop Moss and Catcrag Moss, Wither- 
slack, nr. Grange-over-Sands J. 
Ketchen, 205 

Meigenia dorsalis Mg. (Dipt.: Tachinidae) 
an Ecological Note. A. A. Allen, 
192 

Melanargia galathea L. ab. craskei 
Tubbs. Notes on Breeding the 
Marbled White Butterfly; R. 
Revels, 57 

Melanargia russiae Esper from Greece. 
J. G. Coutsis, 198 

Mellicta athalia Rott. in Britain: Notes 
on Distribution and Ecology. The 
Heath Fritillary C. J. Luckens, 229 

Migrants on the Isle of Canna besides 
P. cardui and _ V. atalanta. Other 
J. L. Campbell, 258 

Migrant Dragon at Mercury Vapour 
Light. M. Hadley, 258 

Metrioptera roeselii (Hagenbach) f. diluta 
(Charpentier) (Orthoptera; Tetti- 
goniidae) a Record for Kent R. H. 
Cumming, 46 


Vi 


Mompha nodicolella Fuchs (Lep. Mom- 
phidae). Unusual behaviour of 
C. W. Plant, 255 

Monmouthshire Lepidoptera: Some 
Recent Records. G. H. Neil-Horton, 
150 

Moses Harris’ An Exposition of English 
Insects. Another Fasicule of R. S. 
Wilkinson, 143 

Mythimna albipuncta D. & S. in Hamp- 
shire. The White-Speck Wainscot 
J. R. Langmaid, 246 

Neocnemodon brevidens (Eggar 1865) 
(Diptera: Syrphidae) New to 
Britain. A. Stubbs, 45 

Neofrisaria singula Starg. (Lep. Gelechi- 
idae) in Rabbit Burrows. J. Parry, 
EST 

New Butterflies from South Africa. 
Six Further C. G. C. Dickson, 1 

New Forest Area. Records of some 
Non-Lepidopterous Insects from 
the J. C_A. Craik, 243 

Nymphalis polychloros L. in Surrey in 
1980. The Large Tortoiseshell: 
J. Weir, 218 

Orange-Tip Butterfly in Northern 
England. A Theory to Account for 
the Spread of the EF. Lees, 122 

Orange-Tip Butterfly. The Mystery of 
the A. G. Long, 292 

Orange-Tip. The Return of the J. R. 
Miller, 248 

Orgyia antiqua L.: Some Notes on the 
Vapourer Moth M. Reese, 234 

Orgyia recens Huebner. Concerning the 
Scarce Vapourer Moth: G13, 
Hyde, 224 

Orthoptera Records in West Sussex. Late 
E. C. M. Haes, 191 

Orthosia miniosa (D. & S.). First Recor- 
ded occurrence in Eastbourne in 
Three Decades. M. Hadley, 190 

Orthosia stabilis D. & S. in December. 
M. Parsons, 49 

Ostrinia nubilalis Huebner (Lep.: Pyra- 
lidae) in the City of London. 
R. A. Softly, 302 

Oulimnius major (Rey.) (= O. falcifer 
Berthelemy) (Col.: Elmidae) New 
to Britain. J. A. Parry, 248 

Overwintering Insects. Some Interesting 
Finds of A. Wootton, 290 

Oxygastra curtisti (Dale 1834) (Odonata: 
Corduliidae) in Bournemouth, an 
Historical Note. S. C. S. Brown, 118 

Pachynematus sulcatus Benson (Hym.: 
Tenthredinidae). The Femal of 
A. D. Liston, 47 

Painted Ladies and Red Admirals. 
Isle of Canna: Invasion of J. L. 
Campbell, 256 


Palpita unionalis Hubn. (Lep.: Pyra- 
lidae) in S. E. England P. Sokoloff, 
218 

Pammene obscurana Steph. in Stafford- 
shire. R. G. Warren, 259 

Paramesia gnomana (Clerke)(Lep.: Tor- 
tricidae) in Sussex in 1979 H.C. 
J. Godfray, 50 

(Pararge aegeria L.). Possible Anti- 
Mating Signals in the Speckled 
Wood L. H. T. Large, 182 

Pararge aegeria L. when Feeding at 
Flowers. Apparent Colour Selec- 
tivity by B. K. West, 102 

Parascotia fuliginaria L.: Waved Black 
in Shropshire J. G. Whiteside, 53 

Parthenogenesis. P. J. Johnson, 255 

Phlogophora meticulosa L. Bred from a 
Damaged Pupa. Curious Case of a 
Dwarf D. Dey, 193 

Phloiotyra voudoueri Muls.  (Col.: 
Melandryidae) in S. E. London A. 
A. Allen, 153 

Phyllonorycta messaniella (Zell.) (Lep. 
Gracillaridae). Foodplants of H. 
C. J. Godfray, 204 

Platyptilia isodactylus Zeller in Stafford- 
shire. A. G. Warren, 248 

Plusia gamma L. and Nomophila noc- 
tuella D. & S. in S. Devon. 4. L. 
O Heffernan, 251 

Poecilmitis Butler (Lepidoptera: Lycae- 
nidae) from the Western Cape 
Province. A New Species of C. G. 
C. Dickson, and C. A. Henning, 
294 : 

Poecilocampa populi (L.). Early Date 
for the December Moth: D. Dey, 12 

Polygonia agea Cramer in Malta A. 
Valletta, 97 

Polygonia c-album L. in Kent. Abnormal 
Abundance of the Comma: £&. 
Carpinter, 195 

Polygonia c-album L.in North Yorkshire. 
The Comma P. Q. Winter, 303 

Pontania crassipes (Thomson) (Hym.: 
Tenthredinidae) New to Wester 
Ross and Comments on its Local 
Distribution. A. D. Liston, 249 

Precis archesia ugandensis (Lep.: Nymp- 
halidae): A New Species. L. McLeod, 
109 

Predators and ‘“Eyespot Butterflies” 
Feeding on Rotting Fruit and 
Soupy Fungi in Tropical Forests: 
Variations on a Theme Developed 
by the Muyshondts and Arthur 
M. Shapiro. The Interaction of 
A. M. Young, 63 

Pterostichus angustatus (Dft.) (Col.: 
Carabidae) in Angus. First Scottish 
Record A. Garside, 74 


Pugs. British F.C. L. Simson, 261 

Pyrrhidium sanguineum L. and Criocep- 
halus rusticus L. (Col.: Longicornia) 
in Monmouthshire. G. A. Neil- 
Horton, 52 

Relaxing Insects. NV. L. Birkett, 227 

Rhodometra_ sacraria L. and Other 
Lepidoptera at Tonbridge. The 
Vestal A. FE. Tapp, 248 

Rhodometra_ sacraria LL. Discharging 
Meconium. Feral E. S. Bradford, 
200 

Rhodometra sacraria L. in Sussex. The 
Vestal P. F. Walley, 198 

Rhodometra sacraria L. on Romney 
Marsh. The Vestal J. E. Owen, 
259 

Rhyacia simulans Hufnagel. Curious Dis- 


covery Concerning The Dotted 
Rustic J. N. D'Arcy, 242 
Rhyacia simulans Hufn. and Other 


Interesting Lepidoptera at a North 
Warwickshire Site R. J. Thomson, 


DI9 

Rhyacia simulans (Hufn.) in Kent. 
A Third Specimen of P. Sokoloff, 
250 


Saturnia pavonia L.: 
K. Porter, 175 

Saturnia pavonia L.: Larvae in Cumbria. 
Unusual Foodplant for J. Briggs, 
377) 

Satyrid Butterfly from Greece. On the 
Status of a little known J. Brown, 
280 

Satyrid Spotting Scheme — A Request 
R.L. H. Dennis, 169 

Sawfly Records from Southern Scotland. 
A Few Interesting A. D. Liston, 
216 

Scrobipalpa ocellatella (Boyd) (Lep.:: 
Gelechiidae) on Cultivated Beet. 
P. J. Johnson, 248 

Selenia bilunaria Esp. and Partheno- 
genesis. The Early Thorn 
M. J. Symes, 52 

Small Tortoiseshell in Flight in February 
C. J. Randall, 87 

Small Tortoiseshell in Kent. An Ad- 
ditional Early Sighting of A. P. 
Foster, 260 

Spring Moths at Ninfield, Sussex. Some 
Unusual M. Parsons, 136 

Spring of 1980 and its Effects as Reflec- 
ted in Early Emergence of Spring 


Foodplants of 


Moths. The Warm M. Hadley, 
154 
Southern Scotland in 1979. Some 


New Records of Lepidoptera from 

K. P. Bland, 161 
Spatalistis bifasciana 

Heal, 175 


(Hbn.) INS Es 


Vii 


“Stared and Grinned at by the Vulgar”. 
On Being J. A. C. Greenwood, 
Li) 

Sterrha vulpinaria Herrich Shafer (rus- 
ticata sensu auct.) (Lep.: Geomet- 
ridae) and a Second Natural Larval 
Foodplant. B. K. West, 31 

Stigmella minusculella (Herrich Shafer) 
P. J. Johnson, and A. M. Emmet, 
37 

Stilpon nubilus Coll. (Dipt.: Empididae) 
New to Kent A. A. Allen, 26 

Strange Method of Capturing a Lepido- 
pteron. AM. J. Wells, 119 

Strymonidia w-album Knoch. The White 
Letter Hairstreak: A. Archer- 
Lock, 254 

Strymonidia w-album Knoch The White- 
Letter Hairstreak: P. J. Holdaway, 
153! 

Surgical Spirit as a Relaxing Agent. 
P. J. Johnson, 49 

Surgical Spirit as a Relaxing Agent. 
D. J. Sevastopulo, 227 

Surrey Garden. An Unlikely Find in 
aN ALA Allen. 6 

Switzerland 1979. Butterflies in Eastern 
C. J. Luckens, 103 

Syngrapha circumflexa L.: Yorkshire Y 
A. D. Torlesse, 28 

Teleiopsis diffinis Haworth (Lep.: Gele- 
chiidae) H. E. Chipperfield, 168 

Teritorial Behaviour in British Butter- 
flies W. G. Shreeves, 267 


Thadeus W. Harris and Samuel H. 
Scudder Papers R. S. Wilkinson, 
225 


Thanet. A Note from the Isle of M. R. 
Longdon, 228 

Thera juniperata L. in Bedfordshire. 
The Juniper Carpet: V. W. Arnold, 
24 


Thera juniperata L.: Juniper Carpet in 
Warwickshire. R. Smith, 24 

Thera variata (Denis & Schiffermuller) 
and Related Changes in the Nomen- 
clature. The Apparent Absence 
from Britain of D. Agassiz, 162 

Thereva nobilitata ¥. (Diptera: There- 
vidae). On the Feeding Habits of 
Y. Z. Erzinclioglu, 251 

Trap for Carrion Flies. A New Y. Z. 
Erzinclioglu, 219 

Trichiura crataegi L. in Kent. The Pale 
Eggar: M. Enfield, 260 

Trichoplusia ni Huebner at Portland in 
1980. The Ni Moth: W. L. Coster, 
196 

Trogonoptera brookiana brokiana (Wal- 
lace) in Sarawak. Notes on the 
Behaviour of Rajar Brooke’s Bird- 
wing Butterfly: A. L. Panchin, 98 


Vili 


Tutt’s Pterophorina of Britain. The 
Dates of Publication of C. L. 
Nissen, 121. 

Tyria jacobaeae L. (Cinnabar). Food- 
plants of XW. L. Birkett, 25 

Tyria Jacobaeae L. (Cinnabar) on Colts- 
foot. Another Record B. Wallace, 
and J. D. Wallace, 144 

Ugyops caelatus (White). Selection of 
Lectotype R. G. Fennah, 76 

Ultraviolet Fluorescent Tubes for 
Attracting Insects. The Use of 
Portable 40 Watt R. S. Wilkinson, 
187 

Utetheisa Huebner (Lep.: Arctiidae) in 
the Western and Central Pacific, 
with the Description of a New 
Species from Nieue Island. Further 
Observations on the Species of 
G. S. Robinson, and H. S. Robinson, 
13 

Vanessa atalanta L. in South Devon. 
Abnormal Abundance of C. G. 
Lipscomb, 269 

Vanessa atalanta (L.) in Cumbria. An 
Early Record of WN. L. Birkett, 
195 

Wiedmannia (Chamaedipsia) lota Walker 
(Diptera: Empididae) from Nor- 
thamptonshire. J. G. F. McLean, 
191 

Yponomeuta irrorella (Hbn.). A New 
Locality for A. J. Butcher, 138 


CURRENT LITERATURE. 8, 16, 56, 
S87 125, 155,196, 223; 301, 302. 


OBITUARY NOTICES: 
Norman Denbigh Riley, 19 
The Baron C. G. M. de Worms, 29 
Bishop Skat/Hoffmeyer, Denmark, 
127 


PRACTICAL HINTS. 18, 54, 83, 300. 


Agassiz, D. J., 162 

Allen;-A. A., 6, 26, 33, 50, 152, 153, 
1905 192) 252,275 

Archer-Lock, A., 87, 254, 266 

Arnold, V. W., 24 


Birkett, N. £5 ‘8, 25, 50,85, 195, 227 
Bland, K. P., 61, 161 

Bradford, E. S., 55, 121, 200 
Bretherton, R. F., 62, 89, 144 

Briggs, J., 37, 46 

Brindle, A., 172 

Brown, J., 280 

Brown, S.C. S., 118 

Butcher, A. J., 138, 168 


Campbell, J. L., 198, 238, 256, 258 

Carlberg, U., 180 

Carpinter, E., 195 

Chalmers-Hunt, J. M., 25, 55, 62, 89, 
195, 289 

Chesney, B., 246 

Chatelain, R. G., 193 

Clarke, Sir C., 70 

Cooper, M. W., 239 

Coster, W. L., 196 

Coutsis, J. G., 197, 198 

Cowan, C. F., 74, 282 

CraikenGeAe sia243 

Crossley, R., 247 

Cumming, R. H., 46 


D’Arcy, J. N., 242 

Dennis, R. L. H., 169 

Dewick, A. J., 154 

Dey, D., 12, 193 

Dhillon, S. S., 184 

Dickson, C. G. C., 1, 38, 294, 297 


Elvidge, M., 179 

Emmet, A. M:, 27,°37) 69; 11320129). 
220 

Enfield, M., 260 

Erzinclioglu, Y. Z., 219, 251 

Evans, K. G. W., 253 


Fearnehough, T. D., 53 
Fisher, J. B., 210 
Foster, A. P., 193, 260 


Garside, A., 74 
Goater, B., 54 
Godfray, H.C. S., 50, 204 
Greenwood, J. A.C., 117 


Hadley, M., 154, 190, 258, 282 
Haes, E.C. M., 191 

Haggett, G. M., 97, 144 

Harmer, A. S., 87, 197, 200, 298 
Hart, C., 118 

Hawker, P., 22, 279 

Heal, .N. F287, 97. 113.475.4901 
Heckford, R., 201 

Hedges, J., 303 

Henning, G. A., 294, 297 

Higgs, G. E., 53 

Holdaway, P. J., 153 

Horton, G. A. N., 52, 153 
Hulme, P. D., 171 

Hyde, G. E., 224 


Jackson, S. M. 139 

Johnson, P. J., 32, 37, 49, 248, 255, 
259 

Johnston, A. F., 194 


Ketchen, J., 205 
Kevan, K. McE., 77 


Langmaid, J. R., 

Paree, L. H: T., 182 

Larsen, T. B., 86 

bees, E., 112 a 

Lempke, B. J., 25, 289 
5 Bo 210) 


Lipscomb, G Cu 


246, 260, 276 


205,269 


Liston, A. D., AF. 216, 249 


Long, A. G., 152, 292 
Longdon, M. Re228 
uckens, C. J.,.229 


MacGowan, I., 124 
Marcon, J. A., 34, 277 
Marran, P., 154, 235 
McLean, I. G. F., 191 
McLeod, L., 109, 221 
Messenger, J. L., 29 
Minnion, W. E., 144 
Morton, A. C., 75 


Nash, D. R., 120 
Nissen, C. L., 121 


O’Connor, J. P., 167 
O’Connor, M. A., ey 


O’Heffernan, H. L., 192, 194, 256 
Owen, J. E., 192, ne 
Panchin, J. A., 


98 
Parry, J. A., 9, 211, 257, 248 


Parsons, M., 49, 136 
Phelps, H. Ge 196 
Pickering, R., 196, 274 
Plant, C. W., 255 
Plant, R. A., 123 
Porter, K., 175 


Randall, C. J., 87 
Read, W. J., 176 
Reese, M., 234 
Revels, R., 57 
Richardson, A., 55 


Robinson, G. S., 
Robinson, H. 26 
Rose, H. S., 184 
Rutherford, CrlE2389 


Ow 


Sevastopulo, 
Showler, A. J., 
Shreeves, W. ee 267 
Simson, E. C. L., 261 
Smith, R., 24 

Softly, R. A., 302 
Sokoloff, P., 218, 234, 250 
Speight, M. C. D., 145 
Stevenson, D. R., 157 
Stubbs, A., 45, 114 

Symes, M. J., 52 


Tapp, A. E., 248 
Tennent, W. J., 206 
Thomas, R. J., 279 
Torlesse, A. D., 28 
Tubb, C. J., 194 


Valletta, A., 97 
Vine-Hall, J. H., 23 


Wallace, B., 144 
Wallace, I. D., 7, 144 
Walley, P. F., 198 
Waring, P., 283 


Warren, R. A., 248, 257, 259 


Watkinson, I. A., 54, 55 
Watson, R. W., 193 
Weir, J., 218 

Welch, R. C., 123, 259 
Wells, M. J., 118 

West, B. K., 31, 102 
Whiteside, J. G., 53 
Wild, E. H., 12 
Wilkinson, R. S., 143, 
Winter, P. Q., 54, 200, 303 


Young, A. M., 63 


ix 


227 


1875 225, 273 


VOL. 92, No. 1 


January, 1980 ISSN 0013-8916 


SS SS EG OR OK 


595. 7054 


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Six Further New Butterflies from Southern Africa 
By C., G. C.. Dickson, M:Se.* 


(Continued from Volume 91, page 302) 


LYCAENIDAE 


Stugeta subinfuscata Grinberg, 1910. Denkschr. med.— 
naturw. Ges. Jena 16: 107, pl. 3, fig. 3. [Type-locality: Wind- 
huk (sic), two females (Lindt). ] 


Stugeta subinfuscata subinfuscata Grinberg stat. nov. 


Although treated originally as a separate species, this 
taxon has for many years been regarded by various workers as 
a race of Stugeta bowkeri (Trimen) — or has at times beer 
subjected to an even lower status. Thanks, essentially to Mr. 
W. H. Henning having drawn attention to the matter and 
having provided good grounds for regarding this insect as a 
distinct species, its original status is now recognised by the 
present writer, in this paper — and after a further detailed 
comparison, including the male genitalia, with specimens of 
Stugeta bowkeri bowkeri. The characters given in the original 
description serve to separate it convincingly from the last 
named taxon and, in the writer’s opinion, the valves of the 
male genitalia confirm its specific status — the characteristic 
features of the valves being as referred to in the description of 
the race of this insect which appears later in this paper. 


Three new members of the Stugeta bowkeri (Trimen) group 
The first of these insects, from Little Namaqualand, has 
been known for more than a century, Trimen having received 


* “Blencathra’’, Cambridge Avenue, St. Michael’s Estate. Cape Town. 


LEGEND OF FIGURES 


Stugeta subinfuscata reynoldsi subsp. nov.: fig. 1. ¢ holotype (upper- 
side); fig. 2. @ holotype (underside); fig. 3. 92 allotype (upperside): 
fig. 4. 2 allotype (underside). Stugeta bowkeri henningi subsp. nov.: 
fig. 5. ¢ holotype (upperside); fig. 6. ¢ holotype (underside): fig. 7. 2 
allotype (upperside); fig. 8. 2 allotype (underside). Stugeta bowkeri tearei 
subsp. nov.: fig. 9. ¢ holotype (upperside); fig. 10. @ holotype (under- 
side); fig. 11. @2 allotype (upperside); fig. 12. 2 allotype (underside). 
Poecilmitis wykehami spec. nov.: fig. 13. ¢@ holotype (upperside); fig. 
14. g holotype (underside); fig. 15. 2 allotype (upperside); fig. 16. 92 
allotype (underside). Trimenia macmasteri mijburghi subsp. nov.: fig. 
17. @ holotype (upperside); 3 holotype (underside); fig. 19. 2 allotype 
(upperside); fig. 20. 2 allotype (underside). 


Figures approximately 0.84 times natural size. 


(Colour reproduction by Unifoto (Pty.), Ltd., Cape Town.) 


2 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


a female specimen which was caught by G. A. Reynolds at 
“Springbokfontein” in 1873; this example being referred to by 
Trimen in S.A. Butt. 2: 133, and described (but not named 
separately) by him on the page mentioned as an “Aberration 
(or Variety?) of Jolaus bowkeri. In later years this butterfly 
has been associated and considered to be synonymous with 
Stugeta subinfuscata Grinberg (or St. bowkeri subinfuscata, 
as the taxon has usually been referred to) which, as indicated 
above, came originally from Windhoek, South West Africa. Dur- 
ing the past year or two the present writer had had some mis- 
givings about these insects being entirely synonymous — but 
was not convinced that this was not the case until Mr. Henn- 
ing, in a recent letter, gave his own views and stated that, for 
various reasons, he believed they were not quite the same taxa. 
Specimens which he had seen, from South West Africa, and 
which evidently answered to nominate subinfuscata in every 
respect, differed in certain details from the Little Namaqua- 
land taxon. A number of the former specimens were sub- 
sequently sent to the writer for examination. Furthermore, Mr. 
R. I. Vane-Wright of the British Museum (Nat. Hist.) has him- 
self kindly furnished very useful information concerning subin- 
fuscata, including a photostat copy of the original description 
in German — which was received by the writer through Mr. 
Henning. 

It seems probable that a specimen taken by William 
Burchell in 1814 at ““Chue Spring, on the Maadje Mountains” 
in Bechuanaland (now Botswana), which is in the remains of 
Burchell’s collection in the University Museum, Oxford (vide 
Trimen, op. cit.),would correspond to the present subinfuscata. 
In at least one of his important publications (or ones in con- 
junction with Bennett), Monsieur H. Stempffer has figured 
very accurately the valves of members of this group from 
various localities in Africa; and the “‘spines” and their dis- 
position, at the distal end of the valves vary in accordance 
with the different taxa in a number of cases (vide Stampffer & 
Bennett, 1958. Bull. Inst. fr. Afr. noire, Sér. (A): 1264-5, figs. 
13-15). 

The other two insects included in the present paper are 
both from the Transvaal. The first of these seems only to have 
been found in the more southern portion of the Province, 
apart from two known captures (by K. M. Pennington and an 
unspecified collector) in the Orange Free State. The second is 
not apparently found so far to the south (these butterflies are 
not, of course, known to be sympatric), but it spreads widely 
through much of the rest of the Transvaal and enters adjoining 
territories such as Botswana and Rhodesia, and_ possibly 
extends still further to the north. 

The question of the status which should be accorded to 
these latter two insects has been by no means easy to decide. 
It is nevertheless felt that, on balance, specific status would 
not be fully justified without entirely satisfactory evidence of 
this being likely — and with deference to M. Stempffer and 


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SIX FURTHER NEW BUTTERFLIES FROM SOUTHERN AFRICA 3 


his rather conservative treatment of the group as a whole. If 
in either case specific status was found later to be more correct, 
such a change could then be made. Comparisons have been 
included in the first description concerned, hereunder, with 
both nominate Stugeta bowkeri and St. subinfuscata subinfus- 
cata. 


Stugeta subinfuscata reynoldsi subsp. nov. 
Upperside 

In both sexes this insect is of a full, rich violaceous — 
blue colour — i.e., in the case of genuinely fresh or unfaded 
specimens. Its general pattern, which includes the broad black 
bordering and other prominent black marking of the forewing, 
in conjunction with smaller white (or some times partly bluish- 
white) marking, and, in the hindwing, a black apical patch, is 
on the whole of a more clear-cut and striking form than in 
nominate Stugeta bowkeri itself. (The ¢& holotype happens to 
have the white marking much better developed than in the 
allotype 2.) 

Underside 

The general colouring of the hindwing (and, in the darker- 
marked examples, the forewing also) is grey to brownish-grey, 
with alternating white or whitish areas present in the forewing 
(basal, medial and postmedial); and, in the hindwing, a white 
transverse band beyond middle. Less heavily marked specimens 
have the white portions of the forewing expanded sufficiently 
to form the more general colour of the wing. On the hindwing, 
and especially in the female, the area from the base to the 
dark, discal transverse band (not always clearly defined in- 
wardly as such) is frequently of a lighter grey, owing to a 
suffusion, here, of white scaling; while the distal borders of all 
wings are less dark than the other definitely defined dark por- 
tions of the wings. 

At first glance this insect may not look very different from 
examples of St. subinfuscata subinfuscata, but a number of 
differences, in detail, have been observed and, it is believed, 
warrant its recognition as a separate race. The blue of the 
upperside in the specimens that have been examined has been 
deeper than in ones of the latter taxon that have been used 
for comparison, especially in the males and, on the underside, 
the darkening in all wings has been more general, and par- 
ticularly so in the males, of reynoldsi. Points of difference on 
the underside also include, in the hindwing, in reynoldsi, the 
less well-defined tracery of thin dark marking in the area from 
the base to the medial dark transverse band or streak; and the 
less noticeable constriction in about the middle of the post- 
medial white band. Specimens of reynoldsi that have been 
caught 11 miles north of Kamieskroon have shown a less full 
development of the underside dark marking. 

Length of forewing: male, 14.5-16.5 mm. (the former 
measurement, in holotype); female, 16.0-18.25 mm. (16.25 mm. 
in allotype). 


4 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


Specimens show some variation, as would be expected, in 
the size of the white upperside markings. The underside varies 
as regards the depth of the darker areas as well as, within 
limits, their extent. 

This taxon (as well as the nominate race of subinfuscata) 
can be separated very easily from other species that have been 
studied, by the valves of the male genitalia, which are of the 
form figured by Stempffer (op. cit., fig. 15), of another Spring- 
bok specimen, referred to as Stugeta bowkeri subinfuscata (and 
which the writer has found to be quite the same as in the 
nominate race from South West Africa). The valve has the 
second acute spine at its distal end much further removed from 
the first one, than in other Southern African taxa which have 
been examined, and is also more inwardly deflected (but this 
deflection is certainly more apparent in specimens that have 
dried out after dissection). The small size of the valve is very 
apparent in reynoldsi (and the nominate race). 

& Holotype, WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE: 17 miles N. 
of Springbok, 8.XII.1977 (I. Bampton); British Museum Reg. 
No. Rh. 18682. 

2 Allotype, W. CAPE PROVINCE: data as for holo- 
type; British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18683. 

Paratypes in author’s collection: as holotype, mid-Septem- 
ber, 1950, two 92 (Col. H. C. Bridges). Eleven miles N. of 
Kamieskroon, C.P., 2.1X.1962, 1 9; 27.IX.1962, two oo (C. 
G. C. Dickson). 

Paratype in Coll. C. W. Wykeham, loc. as above, 
27.1X.1962. one 2 (C. W. Wykeham). 

Paratypes in Coll. W. H. Henning: 17 miles N. of 
Springbok, C.P., 30.XI.1974, three 99: 4.XII.1974, one o (1. 
Bampton). 

Paratype in Coll. W. Teare: O’okiep, C.P., 16.XI.1978, 
one oO (W.T.). 

Paratype in Coll. National Museum, Bulawayo, Rhodesia: 
Springbok, 3,000 ft., 20.X1.1938, one ¢ (R. C. Wood), 

Paratype in Coll. South African Museum: data on one 
side of label —‘“‘Cape. Namaqualand. Springbokfontein [now 
Springbok] ;’’ data on other side of label —“G.A.R. [G. A. 
Reynolds]. 1873. Matjes-kloof:” one female. (Specimen 
examined through the courtesy of Dr. V. B. Whitehead and 
Mr. A. J. Prins of the Entomological Dept. of above museum.) 

Paratypes in Coll. Transvaal Museum: Braki, Richtersveld. 
C.P., 15.X1.1933, one male (G. van Son). Profadder, C.P., 
12.X.1946, two males (K. M. Pennington). Springbok, C.P., 
4.X.1955, one male, 6.X.1955, one male (H. Cookson). Three 
miles S. of Garies, C.P., 10.IV.1965, one male (R. C. Little- 
wood). 

It is interesting to note that specimens from the Rua 
Cana Falls, South West Africa, taken by Mr. C. W. Wykeham 
in June, 1977, have lost or largely lost (at least in the hind- 
wings) the infuscation so characteristic, on the underside, of 


subinfuscata, although having the same disposition of the 
spines on the valves. 


SIX FURTHER NEW BUTTERFLIES FROM SOUTHERN AFRICA 5 


This present race of St. subinfuscata will doubtless occur 
in many other localities in Little Namaqualand, as yet un- 
recorded. 


Stugeta bowkeri henningi subsp. nov. 

This insect is, in both sexes, also of a deeper violaceous- 
blue colour than nominate Stugeta bowkeri (Trimen), and is 
of rather greater average size, too. Weight is added to the 
significance of external differences which are present in the 
wings, by some generally discernible difference in the valves of 
the male genitalia. The first example of Stugeta bowkeri 
bowkeri was caught by Colonel J. H. Bowker, “‘at the edge of 
a forest”? on the Bashee River, Kaffraria, and was described by 
Trimen in Rhop. Afr. Aust. 2: 225; and is figured extremely 
accurately in colour on Pl. 4, fig. 4, of this work. It is con- 
cluded that specimens of St. bowkeri from Queenstown in the 
Eastern Cape Province correspond to the original butterfly and 
such specimens have been used as the basis of comparison in 
the present description. The above-mentioned figure agrees 
well with females from Queenstown; both sexes having been 
caught there in good numbers by Mr. C. W. Wykeham in 
February, 1967. 

Upperside 

Apart from the point mentioned concerning the ground- 
colour of the upperside, there is a tendency for the white 
marking to be less pronounced, in all wings, in the present 
taxon, and more noticeably so when the respective females are 
compared — and more obviously in the hindwings. In the 
male, at least, the inner and outer series of dark markings 
parallel with the distal margin of the hindwing are better 
developed than in bowkeri bowkeri, and the latter markings 
are of a more sagittate form than in this insect. 

Underside 

No completely constant difference seems to be apparent 
in henningi, although there is a quite frequent tendency for 
the broad space between the first and second lines parallel with 
the distal margin to contain darker scaling, in the case of all 
wings; also for the lines and even other markings to be more 
noticeably rufous-coloured, generally, and the lines somewhat 
thicker than in bowkeri bowkeri. 

Length of forewing: male, 15.75-18.25 mm. (16.25 mm. 
in holotype); female, 16.25-20.0 mm. (18.25 mm. in allotype). 

There is some variation, as might be expected, in the 
individual marking of both surfaces in both sexes. 

The valves of the male genitalia have shown some rela- 
tively small but generally apparent difference in a very fair 
representative number of specimens which have been com- 
pared with nominate St. bowkeri. In henningi the small outer 
spine at the distal end of the valve has usually had a more 
outward curvature in relation to the distal margin, than in 
bowkeri bowkeri, and the valve has been more angular and less 
widely curved beween the distal and dorsal margins. (In one 


6 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


exception in the material examined, the valves of bowkeri 
bowkeri itself have been equally angular at this point.) There 
is a tendency (i.e., judging by the specimens that have been 
compared) for the larger spine at the distal end to be more 
robust, in henningi, than the corresponding spine in bowkeri 
bowkeri. 

3 Holotype, TRANSVAAL: Potchefstroom, 16.XII.1973 
(S. F. Henning); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18684. 

9 Allotype, TRANSVAAL: data as for holotype (Si 
Henning); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18685. 

Paratypes in Coll. W. H. Henning: data as for holotype, 
18.X.1970, one 3, one 2 (G. A. Henning); 23.11.1973, one o&, 
one ° (G. A. Henning), one ¢ (S. F. Henning): 18.X.1973 one 
3, eight 92 (G.A.H.), one ? (I. Bampton), one of, seven 99 
(S.F.H.); 22.XII.1973, one ?, 3.111974, one 9, 4.1I.1974, one 
3, 5.11.1974, one 9, 13.1X.1974, one o,28.1X.1974, one oF, 
5.X.1974, one o, 13.X.1974, one o, 15.X.1974, one oC, 
10.X.1974, one 9, 23.X.1974, three 99, 23.XI.1974, one oF, 
16.XII.1974, one ?, 9.11I.1975, one ? (G.A.H.). (Final series 
largely bred examples.) 

Paratype in author’s collection: Rhenoster Kop, Orange 
Free State, 30.1X.1945, one & (K. M. Pennington). 

Paratype in Coll. National Museum, Bulawayo, Rhodesia: 
Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, 29.XI.1918, one male. 

This beautiful insect is named, with much pleasure, after 
my nee Mr. W. H. Henning, and with his two sons also in 
mind. 

(To be continued) 


AN UNLIKELY FIND IN A N.E. SuRREY GARDEN. — One 
afternoon or evening in the first half of August 1978, an 
extraordinary stroke of fortune befell my friend Dudley Col- 
lins. On a clump of golden-rod (Solidago canadensis) in full 
flower, in his garden at Carshalton Beeches, were two Lycaenid 
butterflies settled or at rest, which he was able to take for 
examination before finally releasing them. One was a ¢ 
Plebejus argus L. (Silver-studded Blue); the other, yet more 
surprising, was Strymonidia w-album Knoch (White-letter 
Hairstreak) — in a weak and worn state, as would be natural 
at such a late date for the species. He had not definitely seen 
either in the district before, or anywhere near. De Worms 
(1950, Butterflies of the London Area and its Surroundings) 
cites for w-album only Box Hill and, in the supplementary 
list of 1959, two casual sightings on Bookham Common — 
both localities on the fringe of the area; while the nearest 
ones for argus would seem to be the heathlands from Oxshott 
westwards. The possibility, however, of a colony somewhere 
on Banstead Downs, only a few miles away, cannot be ruled 
out. The chances of meeting with either species in an ordinary 
small garden so near to the environs of London are remote 
enough; but that the two should occur together on the same 


clump of flowers is surely a coincidence nothin 
: short of 
astounding. — A. A. ALLEN. 3 


An Unconfirmed Record of 
the Green Silver-spangled Shark: 
Cucullia argentea (Hufn.) in Britain 
By I. D. WALLACE’ 

In 1977 Merseyside County Museums, Liverpool were 
fortunate to be bequeathed 7,000 British Macro-lepidopera, 
the collection of John S. Greenhill (1898-1976) of Barnett 
Wood Lane, Ashtead, Surrey. Among many fine insects, the 
collection includes a female of Cucullia argentea (Hufn.) The 
data label, written in Greenhill’s hand is “KENT 7/1932”. 

The only other reputedly British specimen appears to be 
that now in the Stephens/Stainton collection at the British 
Museum (Natural History). It was collected about 1809 by a 
Mr. Shelton near Dedingstone? (Stephens, 1829) and placed in 
the museum by Dr. Leach (Humphreys, 1860). The validity of 
this record has been questioned (e.g. Humphreys, 1860; Kirby, 
1882, 1890); Stainton (1857) and most later authors omit the 
species from the British list®. Efforts have therefore been made 
to establish the authenticity of Greenhill’s specimen. 

Greenhill, who was born in Wolverhampton, worked for 
the Liverpool-based printers Eric Bemrose Ltd. and moved 
to Ashtead about 1948, whence much of his material comes. 
He did not include his name on data labels until about 1960; 
earlier labels give only place, month and year. He set Lepidop- 
tera in a distinctive manner and may have set the moth in quest- 
tion. At some stage the right wings have been glued back to the 
body but no evidence can be seen of repinning. Many speci- 
mens in the collection come from other collectors (he bought 
at sales) and either have the original label, are labelled ‘from 
old coll.’ or ‘origin unknown’, or have obviously been re- 
labelled by Greenhill as there are examples in his hand dated 
as early as 1898. No specimen has both an original label and a 
Greenhill copy. Perhaps he wrote individual labels for speci- 
mens from groups covered by general labels, but no other moth 
has the same data and style of setting as the C. argentea 
specimen. 

It is obviously quite conceivable that Greenhill could have 
obtained C. argentea from another collection and by error 
labelled it as having been found in Kent. It seems unlikely that 
a specimen of C. argentea from Kent could have passed 
through the hands of auctioneers such as Stevens, Glendining 
and Debenham & Storr without being recognised. The moth 
had been placed in a series of eleven Green Silver-lines (Pseu- 
doips fagana britannica Warren). This may seem curious, but 
they were several other errors of identification. Mr. Greenhill 
apparently belonged to no entomological society, and probably 
did not exhibit his collection. I am told he did not keep collect- 
ing notebooks. 

It will probably never be possible to prove whether this is 


"Merseyside County Museums, Liverpool, L3 8EN. 

“The location of Dedingstone cannot be traced. 

‘Kirby (1903, The Butterflies & Moths of Europe, plt. 41, figs. 9a, 9b, 9c) 
illustrates in colour the moth, larva & pupa. 


8 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


a genuine Kent specimen, but the likelihood seems great 
enough to merit this note. 


Acknowledgements 
I am particularly grateful to Messrs. Weld and Bevan 
(Solicitors), C. G. Bruce, R. E. Butler, A. H. Hayes, A. S. 
Wheeler and Dr. C. G. M. de Worms for their help. 


References 
Humphreys, H. N., 1860. The Genera of British Moths, p. 68. Allman, 
London. 
Kirby, W. F., 1882. European Butterflies and Moths, p. 26. London. 
Kirby, W. E. [1890]. Butterflies and Moths of the United Kingdom, 
p. 261. Routledge, London. 
Stainton, H. T., 1857. A Manual of British Butterflies and Moths, Vol. 1. 


London. my 
Stephens, J. F., 1829. I/lustratrations of British Entomology, Haustellata, 
Vol. 3, pp. 91-92. London. 


AGROTIS PUTA (HUEBER) IN CuMBRIA.—On 25th August1976 
I was pleased to capture a specimen of the Shuttle-shaped Dart 
in my trap here at Kendal Wood, New Hutton. I have been 
running a m.v. trap for many years and this is the first 
occasion on which I have taken this species in this district. 
Charles G. Barrett (1896, Lepidoptera of the British Isles, 3: 
305) states “‘. . . recorded, though very rarely, in Cheshire, 
Yorkshire and Cumberland: . . .”. Agrotis puta is common on 
the sandhills of south-west Lancashire, as at Formby, but I 
have never noted it on the apparently similar dune areas 
bordering the Cumbrian Irish Sea coast. 

The only other record for this species from this area is 
that of Mr. J. Briggs who took a specimen at his light trap in 
Beetham on 29th May 1978 (vide Birds in Cumbria, 1978: 
53. Published by Association of Natural History Societies in 
Cumbria). — Dr. Nevit_e L. Birkett, Kendal Wood, New 
Hutton, Cumbria. 


Current Literature 


The Lepidoptera of Warwickshire: a Provisional List. Part I, 

Butterflies 1900-1977, by Roger Smith and David Brown. 

55 pages and 2 addenda slips, printed in offset, 4to., 

wrapper. Warwick, 1979.Price £1 plus p.&p. 25p. Obtain- 

able from the Warwickshire Museum, Market Place, 

Warwick. 

The list begins with an introduction (pp. 3-5), and an 
account of the geology and habitats (pp. 6-7). Then follow the 
records arranged chronologically, in which altogether 48 
different species of butterfly are treated, and including 40 
distribution maps in the text (pp. 8-44). The work concludes 
with an index of recorders and collectors, an index of species 
(scientific and vernacular) and an index of places. 

Local lists are almost always interesting, and this one is 


rae ae We look forward to the appearance of Part II. 


2 


Notes on the Donaciini (Col: Chrysomelidae), with 
a List of Recent East Kentish Localities known to 
the Author 


By JOHN A. Parry, M.P.S.* 
(Concluded from Volume 91, page 326) 


The nine species found in the Canterbury area were: — 

1. Donacia simplex F. At least a dozen different localities, 
amongst them Sandwich, Westbere, Stodmarsh, Chartham, 
Ash. On Sparganium erectum (ramosum) only. 

2. D. vulgaris Zsch. All over the Sandwich area but never 
abundant, always in drainage dikes, and at Grove Ferry 
in a small ditch leading into the Stour. [On Typha and 
sometimes Sparganium — A.A.A.] 

3. D. marginata Hoppe. Perhaps the commonest species in 
the area, though just lately I have not seen so much of 
it. Evenly distributed over the Sandwich area; Westbere 
and Stodmarsh, Denstroode, Sarre, Canterbury (Thaning- 
ton), etc. On Sparganium erectum. 

4. D. clavipes F. One locality only, in the ditches along the 
main road between Ash and Sandwich. I took only a few 
specimens for fear of erasing the colony, but it seems to 
have died out anyway. On Phragmites communis. The 
individuals lay close to the upper stem, with antennae 
stretched out in front and hind legs stretched behind, and 
were very sluggish. 

5. D. semicuprea Panz. The foodplant of | this species, 
Glyceria maxima (Poa aquatica in older books), occurs 
commonly in small colonies but is hard to find in the 
quanitities apparently need to support the beetle. I have 
the species from Fordwich, in a ditch leading to one of 
the lakes, and from two adjacent localities in Sandwich: 
each time in some numbers. One of the Sandwich sites is 
in a field opposite the R.A.F. Radar Station on the Canter- 
bury road, from which area I have on more than one 
occasion in the past been escorted by polite RAF military 
policemen, for reasons of National Security”! 

6. D. versicolorea Brahm. Although occurring more gener- 
ally in the Rother Valley in south-west Kent, in the area 
in question I could find it in one place only, in a pond 
near the coast at Faversham Creek, where it was present 
in profusion, as usual on Potamogeton natans. It occurs 
also at Maytham. 

7. Plateumaris sericea L. Frequent around Sandwich, Mins- 
ter, Stodmarsh, often in company with D. marginata but 
rather less common than that species. On Sparganium 
erectum (ramosum). 

8. P. discolor Panz. The distribution of this species appears 
to be limited by the availability of sphagnum, which I have 
always assumed without justification to be the foodplant. 


* 38 Heather Drive, St. Michaels, Tenterden, Kent. 


ENTOMOLOGIST ’S RECORD 1/1/80 


Mr. Philp of Maidstone (a much more experienced 
coleopterist than I) has pointed out that this is a non 
sequitur. Few other insects seem to find sphagnum a 
delicacy, and it is, I suppose, more likely that the foodplant 
is a grass or sedge favouring the same conditions*’. The 
beetle ocurrs on Hothfield Common near Charing (where 
the unique Kentish peat-bog is situated). _ 
P. braccata Scop. Again one locality only in the area, in 
the ditches bordering the main Ash to Sandwich road, on 
Phragmites communis, with D. clavipes (above). The con- 
ditions appear to be duplicated in a hundred other places 
in Kent, yet there must be a special invisible factor which 
suited both species at this particular spot. 

The four species found in the extended area (see above) 


were: — 


10. 


Donacia sparganii Ahr. This occurred in surprising abun- 
dance in a drainage ditch on the road from Rye to Win- 
chelsea, on Sparganium emersum (simplex), on which 
plant alone I have found it in several localities in East 
Anglia. The colony remained for some years, and then the 
ditch suffered salt-pollution (or just possibly a massive 
dose of herbicide) and has not since recovered. [Occurs 
abroad on Butomus also. Hansen gives Nuphar as the 
primary host in Denmark. — A.A.A.] 

D. dentata Hoppe. Found in several places in the May- 
tham area of the Rother levels, near Rolvenden, where it 
still seems to be well established. The foodplant apparently 
likes a maintained water-level and the River Board drains, 
which are kept full throughout the summer, are ideal for 
its welfare. Always on Sagittaria sagittifolia’*. [Abroad, 
also on Alisma (Mohr.). — A.A.A.] 

D. bicolora Zsch. Discovered in some numbers at Botolph’s 
Bridge near New Romney. Having found this species very 
commonly on the Basingstoke Canal I looked for it in 
similar places on the Hythe Military Canal, but without 
success. The Botolph’s Bridge colony seems to be quite 
isolated. [Several recorded foodplants, but chiefly on 
Sparganium erectum. — A.A.A.] 

D. cinerea Hbst. A single specimen from Typha angusti- 
folia in a gravel pit at Dungeness. [I have an example 
taken in this locality by the late S. Wakely. Mainly 
attached to Typha spp. (reedmace); other foodplants 
abroad. — A.A.A.] 


One further species was found, not by my own researches 


but by the kind courtesy of Mr. Philp, who told me of its 


14. 


occurrence in the locality some years before: — 


Macroplea mutica F. A number were taken in a large 
expanse of water near Rye’, on Potamogeton pectinatus. 
Their capture was rendered the more difficult because on 
removing the net from the water the beetles remain quite 
motionless for about ten minutes, and then move so slowly 
that they are very easily missed. It is notable that this 


NOTES ON THE DONACIINI (COL.: CHRYSOMELIDA) 11 


species appeared very much earlier in the year than the 
members of Donacia or Plateumaris, the bulk being taken 
in May. Later, the plant often reaches mattress propor- 
tions and is then impossible to search. 


[While the first two genera are very close and were formely united 
under Donacia, the third (with only two British species) stands apart in 
several respects and is somewhat aberrant within the tribe. 

*This is made possible by the hydrofuge (unwettable) covering of 
the underside, consisting of an extremely dense and short pile — silvery, 
or golden in a few species — which holds air-bubbles; an example of 
‘plastron respiration’ exactly like that found in the pondskaters (Ger- 
ridae). It is not, however, possessed by Macroplea, which lives fully 
submerged in all stages, and to which, therefore, apart from their great 
tenacity, Mr. Parry’s general remarks on adult habits in the tribe are of 
course not intended to apply. 

‘During the last 30 years or so I have found D. marginata more 
often and D. simplex less, as compared with the two previous decades. 
Marginata is today much less local than e.g. bicolora, which was 
evidently not so in Fowler’s time (late 19th century). I believe that D. 
cinerea also — considered rather rare — underwent a similar relative 
increase from about the mid or late 1940s. 

‘Of these species I have found semicuprea in more places and more 
freely than any other, followed next in order by discolor and (sparingly 
except once) vulgaris; sericea (supposed to common) less frequently. 

“However, even isolated wayside ponds and ditches, well away from 
extensive marshes, can harbour several species together and are by no 
means to be neglected. 

®Also occurs in England (Norfolk, Cheshire and Cumberland) if the 
records are correct; isolated ones from Sussex and Dorset may just 
possibly have been based on abnormal unicolorous individuals of mar- 
ginata, further recorded from several Irish localities. 

"Fowler (1890) includes May for several species but agree with Mr. 
Parry that nowadays, at all events, they are seldom about much before 
June — perhaps because our summers tend to begin later than they used 
to. D. marginata appears to have a longer period which can extend to 
early September, at which time I have also taken versicolorea singly. 
The latter species and also dentata occur in August as well as July. The 
late J. Cribb used to find crassipes from late April to July at Pond 
Lye in Sussex, but mostly May-June (and told me that it is often easier 
collected in cool, dull or wet weather when it may be found hiding 
under the water-lily leaves — on fine days it is very wary and hard to 
catch). Victor Hansen gives May-August for about half the Danish 
species; and for some, April-August. For some abnormal occurrences 
of Donacia spp. see Allen, 1973, Ent. mon. Mag., 109: 125. 

SJ have found D. vulgaris in early spring concealed deep in the 
axils of young reeds (Typha) and believe that these and Mr. Parry’s 
winter specimen(s) of simplex were new-generation beetles that had 
emerged from their cocoons the previous autumn, this probably being 
the rule. Hansen (1927) mentions that D. obscura overwinters as an 
imago. 

*Such reservations must be very considerable, for authorities are 
unanimous in assigning at least two foodplant genera to most of the 
species, and not infrequently more; monophagy thus seems to be the 
exception, though there may well be a greater tendency to it in our 
insular fauna as with other phytophagous insects. 

The discrimination shown by this colony of D. crassipes is indeed 
curious and seemingly unaccountable. From the records, there can be 
little doubt that both water-lily genera support it — with, however, 
Nymphaea as the primary host in Britain. Possibly, certain isolated 
colonies tend to become monophagous. Nuphar is given (in second place) 
mostly by foreign authors (as Reitter, Hansen, Mohr), and Mr. Parry’s 
record above may perhaps be the first definite British association with 
this plant to be noted. 


12 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


“My first find of D. versicolorea was of two specimens hidden in 
the axils of burreed (probably S. erectum) in a field pond in N. Somerset 
in 1931, and two more in the same way a year later. Pondweed, the 
true foodplant, was doubtless present but the beetle was not to be seen 
on it. This seems to show that Donaciini may utilize other plants for 
shelter than those on which they feed, and serves to underline the point 
made by Mr. Parry that in unsuitable weather they may be discoverable 
only by very careful searching, if at all. 

“This very handsome species (Fowler’s D. dentipes F.) I regard as 
our most uncommon Donacia (leaving aside obscura), and thalassina 
the next. D. aquatica, like obscura, appears to be absent from Kent but 
several Sussex localities are on record. The foodplants in Britain are not 
well ascertained, but foreign authors mention Ranunculus lingua and 
that favourite Donacia-plant, Sparganium. When I took it, sparingly and 
very locally, in a ditch at Arundel in 1930 and 33, most if not all were 
on a floating ‘grass’ (possibly Glyceria fluitans). Further research seems 
indicated. 

“IT know of no recent Kent record, but the V.C.H. list gives Pegwell 
Bay and Deal. J. J. Walker used to take most of the British species in 
ditches behind the Deal sandhills, including the present one. Recorded 
foodplants are Scirpus, Carex, and Typha. I have only once met with 
D. thalassina — a few examples at the Wake Valley Pond in Epping 
Forest (1954), apparently from a Carex sp. 

“D. impressa and P. discolor can occur in profusion (for the former 
cf. Allen, 1954, Ent. mon. Mag., 90: 56). 

“Besides those suggested here, I think that other contributory 
factors may be the persistence of residues from the widespread use of 
organochlorine pesticides in the 40s and 50s, and the continual seepage 
of nitrates into the water from inorganic fertilizers, leading to oxygen 
deficiency. 

*For Donaciini in Sussex see Cribb, 1954, Ent. mon. Mag. 90: 80; 
Allen, ibid.: 144. 

“As with D. aquatica, the foodplants of P. discolor in Britain appear 
uncertain, despite the comparative frequency of the species, but I think 
that almost certainly Mr. Parry’s second suggestion is right. Sphagnum, 
besides being inherently unlikely as a foodplant in the group, is some- 
times absent where the beetle occurs, nor is the situation always boggy. 
This was the case when I first found discolor, in a N. Somerset valley, 
very copiously on flowers of kingcup or marsh marigold (Caltha palustris) 
in or near a shallow, more or less stony-bottomed stream. Continental 
authors associate it with unspecified sedges and also cotton-grass (Erio- 
phorum), which are closely related. 

*On 13.vili.70 my late friend G. Shephard and I each swept an 
example of this species off flowers of arrowhead which abounded in a 
pasture drainage-ditch on the marshes at Amberley, Sussex; we could 
not get near enough to search the leaves, but could see no beetles on 
them. This is the only time that I have fallen in with D. dentata — 
metaphorically, I hasten to add (though it was a near thing, with over- 
friendly and highly inquisitive cows persistently shoving and jostling us). 

“This was fresh water, I understand — a circumstance very unusual 
for this normally brackish-water species. The other principal host-plant is 
Ruppia; Zostera, given by the older writers, seems questionable because 
of its marine habit. — A.A.A.] 


Earty DATE FOR THE DECEMBER MOTH: POECILOCAMPA 
POPULI (L.). — Amongst the 15 species of moths that appeared 
at my m.v. trap at Trosley Country Park, Kent, on 20th Octo- 
ber was a fresh male of this species. This seems a very early 
date for this moth. — D. Dey, 9 Monmouth Close, Rainham, 
Gillingham, Kent, 24.x.79. 


An ApoLoGcy. — In my review of David Carter’s The 
Observer’s Book of Caterpillars (Ent. Rec., 91: 176), I was in 
error in naming the larva figured as Xylena exsoleta as X. 
vetusta. — E. H. WILD. 


Figs. 1-4. Utetheisa maddisoni sp. n. (1) Antennal segments. (2) 6 
ems (3) Aedeagus with vesica everted. (4) @ genitalia. Scale 
ine = 1 mm. 


13 
Further Observations on the Species of Utetheisa 
Huebner (Lep.: Arctiidae) in the Western and 
Central Pacific with the Description of a New Species 
from Niue Island 
(Concluded from Vol. 91, page 322) 
By GADEN S. ROBINSON? and HuGH S. ROBINSON? 
Description of new species 
Utetheisa maddisoni sp. n. 


3&. Wing-span 37-38 mm (PI. IX, fig. 14). Vertex bright 
yellow with patches of red; frons yellowish white with large 
central black spot; underside of head whitish. Antenna (fig. 
1) with deeply dentate segments, each with a whorl of cilia 
and a pair of lateral setae. First segment of labial palpus with 
ventral brush of yellow scales, second segment yellow with red 
spot on outer surface, third segment black. Patagia bright 
yellow with anterior black spot. Thorax and tegula yellowish 
white, bright yellow anteriorly, patterned with black spots. 
Forewing yellowish cream, patterned with black and crimson. 
Hindwing white with broad charcoal-grey terminal fascia; anal 
angle with fold containing yellow scent-scales. Abdomen white. 
Legs white, marked above with black, foreleg with some yellow 
scales. 

2. 36-41 mm. Of similar pattern to g but vertex with 
black spot and without red scales. Hindwing without fold and 
scent-scales. 

GENITALIA @ (Figs. 2, 3). Similar to genitalia of U. 
salomonis Roths. and U. clareae Robinson but uncus tapered 
at apex to curved point. Tip of valva slightly concave. Vesica 
with scobinate medial zone and group of thorn-like cornuti 
opposite aperture of ductus ejaculatorius; cornuti of second 
(lateral) group small, short and numbering only about 20. 

GENITALIA 9° (Fig. 4). Similar to genitalia of salomonis 
and clareae but emargination of seventh and eighth sternites 
extending almost one-half length of antrum, deeper and 
broader than in salomonis or clareae. Posterior region of 
ductus bursae near junction with ductus seminalis sclerotized, 
smooth, lacking spines. 

LARVA (PI. IX, figs. 17, 18). Base colour pale iemon- 
yellow with black patterning. Dorsal stripe continuous; sub- 
lateral line of conspicuous whitish bars. Head light tan with 
dark brown markings on epicranial plates bordering medial 
and adfrontal sulci and around ocelli. Foodplant: Messer- 
schmidia argentea (Linn. f.) Johnston (Boraginaceae). Feeds 
on upper epidermis of leaves, cutting through the whole leaf 
only in the later instars. 

REMARKS. Utetheisa maddisoni is closely allied to U. 
salomonis Rothschild (Plate IX, fig. 13), but males of the latter 
species lack a fold of scent-scales in the hindwing. The black 


"Department of Entomology, British Museum (Natural History), London 
SW7 SBD. 


*9 Tor-O-Moor Road, Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire. 


14 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


hindwing markings of maddisoni are not as extensive as those 
of salomonis and both sexes of the latter have a large black 
spot on the vertex and no red scales. The male genitalia of the 
two species are similar but the apex of the valva is concave in 
maddisoni and convex in salomonis and the uncus of the 
latter is cygnate but tapered in maddisoni. The lateral group of 
thorn-like cornuti on the vesica of maddisoni is smaller, the 
of cornuti and the tip of the uncus is cygnate as in salomonis. 
the female genitalia have a large patch of thorn-like signa 
anterior to the junction with the ductus seminalis at the pos- 
terior end of the ductus bursae: this group of signa is absent in 
maddisoni. Utetheisa clareae Robinson has less heavily marked 
and more rounded forewings than maddisoni and the red of 
the forewings is paler. The vesica of clareae has only one group 
of cornuti and thetip of the uncus is cygnate as in salomonis. 
The antennal segments of maddisoni are deeply dentate and 
similar to those of clareae and salomonis but much broader 
than in U. pulchelloides marshallorum. The red forewing 
markings of maddisoni are crimson, a warmer tone than in 
marshallorum; the red of clareae is scarlet, that of salomonis 
dark scarlet. 

The larva of maddisoni is of similar appearance to that 
of clareae but the black markings are more extensive, particu- 
larly on the sides (compare pl. X, fig. 4 in Robinson & Robin- 
son, 1974). The ground-colour of the larva of salomonis is 
orange-brown and the dorsal stripe is discontinuous. 

DISTRIBUTION. Niue Island. 

MATERIAL EXAMINED 

Holotype: ot, NIUE IL: 23.ix.1975 (Maddison) (BMNH). 

Paratypes: 7 o, 9 9, 1 larva, data as holotype; 1 9, 
NIUE L: Alofi, 2.iv.1975 (Dugdale); 2 ¢, NIUE I.: Amanau, 
14.vi.1975 (Maddison); 2 §, NIUE I.: Amanau, 16-17.iv.1975 
(Maddison) (BMNB). 

General Observations and Discussion 

Although we have made field collections of some dozens 
of eggs and larvae of salomonis, clareae, stigmata and mar- 
shallorum, none have ever been found to be parasitized and 
the agents of larval mortality remain undetected. It is possible 
that small climbing crabs, frequently observed on Messer- 
schmidia bushes, may feed on larvae and pupae. 

Both H. S. Robinson and Dr. P. A. Maddison have 
observed that, when populations of Utetheisa larvae on Mes- 
serschmidia grow to high levels, great numbers of larvae are 
attacked by a white fungus which affixes them to leaves and 
twigs and ultimately engulfs and destroys them. 

The frass of larvae of ciareae has a strong and extremely 
unpleasant smell, reminiscent of rotting fish. This is so pro- 
nounced that where there is a large larval population the smell 
can be detected some distance from the bushes on which the 
larvae are feeding. This odour has not been observed in other 
species and is definitely not produced by the frass of larvae of 
marshallorum, a species which we have bred in large numbers. 


OBSERVATIONS ON THE SPECIES OF UTETHEISA HUBNER 15 


The outlines of the biogeography of the Pacific Utetheisa 
species have already been discussed (Robinson, 1971). The 
discovery of maddisoni strengthens the conclusion that the 
salomonis-group species (salomonis, clareae, maddisoni) were 
early colonizers of the Melanesian Arc, Fiji and New Cale- 
donia and restricted the subsequent spread of marshallorum 
by monopoly of the only available foodplant. The island groups 
(Lau and Tonga) separating the populations of clareae (E. 
Fiji) and maddisoni (Niue) are less than a million years old and 
do not harbour salomonis-group species. The islands on which 
the salomonis-group species are found are older (with the 
exception of parts of the New Hebrides chain) than Lau and 
Tonga and it is reasonable to suppose that maddisoni reached 
Niue before seafloor spreading began along the Lau-Colville 
Ridge with the genesis of the Lau and, later, Tonga groups 
(Robinson, 1975). 

U. p. marshallorum has a much wider geographic range 
than the salomonis-group and its local populations have 
developed their own typical colour-pattern. It is likely that 
many of these populations are temporary — marshallorum is 
now absent from Tarawa but was collected from that atoll in 
1951. There are no apparent trends in the variation of the 
different marshallorum populations. At first sight, specimens 
from atolls appear larger than those from ‘high’ (volcanic) 
islands, but specimens from the Phoenix Islands are an excep- 
tion to this. It is not at all clear to us why, for example, 
specimens from the Cook Is. have ‘extra’ black and specimens 
from Napuka I. have ‘extra’ red but specimens from Caroline 
I. show both extremes of variation in forewing pattern. These 
isolated populations were established perhaps by only a single 
‘ancestor’ and, being small colonies, have inbred thus con- 
solidating a pattern peculiar to each colony. Marked variability 
within a colony would be due to a sudden expansion of the 
population or the addition of ‘new’ genetic material by immi- 
gration: the cause of variability within (for example) the 
Caroline I. colony is unknown. 

The various Pacific species of Utetheisa are not easy to 
identify in the absence of comparative material. Females, 
lacking the antennal and secondary sexual characters of the 
hindwing, pose a greater problem than males and we have 
refrained from constructing a key for females as we believe it 
would smack of an authority which, in reality, it lacked. 
Indentification is best begun by examination of males and 
comparison with the illustrations here and in earlier works 
(see the bibliography). 


Erratum 


In couplet 5 of the key (above — p. 271), read ‘margin’ 
for ‘markings’. 


References 
Butler, A. G., 1885. Lepidoptera collected by Mr. C. M. Woodford in 


the Ellice and Gilbert Islands. Ann. Mae. i ist. : 
Sn nn ag. nat. Hist., (5) 15: 


16 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


Comstock, J. A., 1966. Lepidoptera of American Samoa with particular 
reference to biology and ecology. Pacif. Insects Monogr., 11: 1-74, 
13 pls. 

Chivenbe. C. C. J. & Edgar, J. A., 1972. Dihydropyrrolizine secretions 
associated with coremata of Uretheisa moths. Experientia 28: 
627-628. 

Holloway, J. D., 1977. The Lepidoptera of Norfolk Island — their bio- 
geography and ecology. Series Ent., 13: i-vi, 1-291, figs. 1-140, pls. 
1-29. 

Manser, P. D., 1973. FAO insect survey of GEIC — list of specimens’ 
numbers. 25 pp. [Photocopy of MS (in Agricultural Dept., Tarawa) 
in authors’ library.] 

Moul, E. T., 1954. Preliminary report on land animals at Onotoa Atoll, 
Gilbert Islands. Atoll Res. Bull., 28: 1-28. 

Paeniu, I., Smith, R. E. N., Vickers, M. E. H., Watt, J., Grossmann, H., 
Grossmann, H. & Ward, E. V., 1974. Line Islands Expedition: 
August-October 1974./Sailing directions for the Line Islands. 
114 pp., 11 pls. Tarawa. 

Robinson, G. S., 1971. The genus U‘setheisa Hiibner in Fiji with a 
description of a new species. Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var., 83: 
123-130, figs. 1-11, pl. V. 

Robinson, G. S., 1975. Macrolepidoptera of Fiji and Rotuma: a taxono- 
mic and biogeographic study. vi + 362 pp., 173 figs., 357 pl. figs., 
10 pls., maps, etc. Faringdon. 

Robinson, G. S., & Robinson, H. S., 1974. Notes on the genus Utetheisa 
Hiibner in the western Pacific with larval descriptions. Entomo- 
logist’s Rec. J. Var., 86: 160-163, pls. X, XI. 

Tams,W. H. T., 1935. Heterocera (exclusive of Geometridae and the 
Microlepidoptera). Insects Samoa, 3: 169-290, figs. 1-12, pls. 4-18. 

Viette, P. E. L., 1954. Lépidoptéres récoltés aux Iles Gilbert. Annis. 
Soc. ent. Fr., 122: 123-130. 


Current Literature 


A Field Guide to the Smaller British Lepidoptera by Members 
of the British Entomological and Natural History Society. 
Edited by A. M. Emmet. 271 pp., stiff wrapper. Edition 
limited to 1,000 copies. Published by the Society. Obtain- 
able from R. F. Bretherton, Folly Hill, Birtley Green, 
Bramley, Guildford Surrey, GU5 OLE. Price £9 (plus 75p 
postage and packing). Special price to members £6 (plus 
75p postage and packing). 


Founded on the late L. T. Ford’s Guide to the Smaller 
British Lepidoptera (1949) and Supplement (1958), the work 
under review is similar in format, but differs notably regard- 
ing the use of taxonomic arrangement, revised nomenclature, 
details of species since added to the British list and the addition 
of much fresh information on those already included. 


The book begins with a list of contents, short introduction 
and list of abbreviations, symbols, etc. (pp. 5-10). Then follows 
the main body of the work (pp. 11-228), in which altogether 
1,501 numbered species are treated, with the original numbers 
in Ford being entered in parenthesis. The work concludes with 
two indices: one to foodplants and other food substances and 
situations (pp. 229-246); the other of families, genera and 
species (pp. 247-271). 


CURRENT LITERATURE 17 


Despite the mass of information contained in this book, 
there appear to be relatively few errors. Augasma aeratella Z., 
“Tast seen in 1934’, should be “‘Last taken at Wimborne, 
Dorset about 1955, by Dr. D. A. B. Macnicol” (cf. Proc. 
Brit. ent. nat. Hist. Soc., 1975, 7 (3): 75); and Agonopterix 
astrantiae Hein. should have Westwell, 1961, and not Dun- 
geness as stated (cf. Ent. Rec., 73: 242). The entries relating 
to the early stages of Monochroa hornigi Staud. (on “‘Poly- 
gonum sp.”); Ancylosis oblitella Z. (larvae on ‘“‘Chenopod- 
iaceae, especially in salt-marshes’’): Agonopterix astrantiae 
Hein. (on “Astrantia major or Sanicula europaeus’) and 
Eurrhypara perlucidalis Hbn. (on Cirsium oleraceum), should 
have been asterisked to indicate that this information was not 
based on British, but on foreign occurrence. Regarding Ptero- 
phorus fuscolimbatus Dup., the late H. C. Huggins (Ent. Gaz., 
4: 124) wrote that emergence starts about June 20, and that 
he took the moth in fresh condition as late as July 31. One 
suggests therefore, “I. 5-7” be replaced by “I. 6-8”. 

Some errors (or suspected errors) in Ford (apparently 
copied from Meyrick), are reproduced here without explana- 
tion. For example, for Bucculatrix artemisiella H.-S. there is 
“TL. 4-5: 7. On Artemisia campestris’. Yet, the only British 
record of artemisiella is based on an unconfirmed example 
said to have been bred from a larva found at Folkestone on 
Achillea millefolium in 1865. Finally, there are a few mistakes 
in the Index. P. 247, for acanthodactyla read acanthadactyla. 
P. 250, for Caloecimorpha read Cacoecimorpha. P. 252, for 
corticella read corticella; for Cosmopteryx read Cosmopterix. 
P. 254, for Elutalis read elutalis; for Epichnopteryx read 
Epichnopterix. P. 265, for roseticolana read roseticolana. P. 
268, swammerdamella should precede Swammerdamia; for 
Teleporia read Taleporia. P. 269, for tinctella read trinotella. 

The following supplementary information may be of 
interest; the larvae of these species having been found by me on 
these foodplants in the wild and successfully reared. Stephensia 
brunnichella L. on Glechoma hederacea (cf. Ent. Rec., 88: 
160); Agonopterix ciliella Stainton on Aegopodium podagraria 
(Perthshire) and Peucedanum palustre (Norfolk); and Acleris 
sparsana D. & S. on Acer campestre (Isle of Wight and 
Surrey). 

Curiously enough, the name of the printers does not 
appear anywhere in the book. This is all the more strange, 
because the printing is of a high standard and the paper is of 
good quality. It is a pleasure therefore, to identify them as 
Messrs. Headland Printers Ltd., Bread Street, Penzance, 
Cornwall. 

For maximum serviceability and satisfaction, one recom- 
mends the book be strongly bound in hard-wearing cloth or 
buckram, the attractive cover bearing Eric Bradford’s illus- 
tration of Ethmia funerella being included and the whole 
volume interleaved for notes. Moreover, those possessing 
Ford’s Guide (now virtually out of print), may find it useful to 


18 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


keep the two works side by side for ready reference, especially 
sO aS many copies of Ford were annotated by their owners. 

This is an invaluable work, brimful of essential detail 
presented in a concise and readily accessible form. Indeed, it is 
questionable whether so much condensed information on the 
whole of the microlepidoptera of this country, or of any 
other, has ever before been collected together within so small 
a compass. No student of the micros, either here or on the 
continent, should be without it. — J. M. C.-H. 


Practical Hints — March 


In 1978, I found a nest of larvae of the Small Eggar 
(Eriogaster lanestris L.) on the Burren. The cocoons were 
brought indoors in early March, 1979, and exposed to the mid- 
day sunshine whenever there was any. March 11th was much 
milder, and sunny, and between 12.20 and 14.00 hrs. five 
males and five females emerged, the males first. A few came 
out on either side of that date, the last on March 24th. The 
remaining pupae, about half the original total, are lying over 
(GOATER). 

You can tell when pupae of the Kentish Glory (Endromis 
versicolora) are going to emerge because they protrude from 
their cocoons for several days before hatching. Emergence 
occurs early in the morning; on March 14th 1979, three 
females and a male emerged before 08.30 hrs. The male paired 
with one of the females at 13.30 and stayed in copula until 
16.30. Within minutes, the male had flown and paired with 
another female. Both females subsequently laid a plentiful 
supply of fertile eggs (GOATER). 

Larvae of Lithophane leautieri Boisd. seem to need flower 
blossom when starting to feed. An ornamental cypress supplied 
the answer for me (A. RICHARDSON). 

Towards the end of March or later, two local species of 
Phyllonorycter may be found. P. junoniella Zell. is still feed- 
ing in mines on Vaccinium vitis-idaea, usually the lower leaves 
of more isolated plants growing amongst heather are pro- 
ductive. Similarly the lower leaves of Vicia sepium may some- 
times after mild winters be found well buried in the grass 
growing under sheltered hedges. These leaves can be searched 
for mines of P. nigriscentella Logan although summer and 
late autumn are usually more productive. Both species have 
mines occupying the whole leaf or leaflet causing the upper 
leaf surface to curve downwards in an un-natural way (WatT- 
KINSON). 

In late March or April, webs of Scythris grandipennis 
Haw., often containing many larvae, may be found spun 
around gorse twigs. If the twigs are trimmed and then pushed 
into damp sand in a plant propogater, the moths are easily 
reared without the need to change the foodplant (WATKINSON). 


(Photo 


IC ANINE), ID 


ING D=RILBY 


by courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum (Nat. 


Hist.)). 


19 
OBITUARY 


NORMAN DENBIGH RILEY 
(1890-1979) 


On the 25th of May 1979, there passed away in his 89th 
year, one of the best-known figures in the world of Entomo- 
logy. For the name of N. D. Riley was known wherever 
butterflies were studied, as well as not least for his long 
association with the Natural History Museum at South Ken- 
sington, which lasted for well over half a century. 

Born on the 20th of September 1890, he was brought up 
at Balham in south-west London, where he found that his next- 
door neighbour was none other than the celebrated lepidopterist 
Richard South. Riley recounts how as a small boy of nine he 
used to be invited round to see the collections, and occasion- 
ally had the great privilege of accompanying the famous 
naturalist on some expedition. This was where the spark was 
lit that began the lifelong interest in butterflies and moths. 
After being educated at Dulwich College from 1904 to 1909, 
Riley received his first introduction to the Natural History 
Museum, it is generally believed, through South. He became 
demonstrator to the eminent naturalist, Sir Ray Lancaster, its 
Director, and two years later in 1911, a vacancy appeared on 
the Museum staff to which he was appointed. This was the 
start of a remarkable career and eventual tenure of office 
there. But when the first world war came in 1914, he joined 
the Army Service Corps and went out to France, being 
appointed Supply Officer to a cavalry brigade. Later, as 
Captain, he was transferred to the Queen’s Royal West Sussex 
Regiment. It was after the war that his main flow of literature 
began, which continued without a break for the next fifty 
years, first when Dr. Gahan was Keeper of Entomology, and 
later under his successor Major E. E. Austen, at whose behest 
a complete census of all the insects was undertaken in 1931. 
Riley, who became Keeper in 1932, inherited no less than a 
population of nearly eight million individuals comprising 
279,000 species and 21 Orders of insects. It is difficult to com- 
pute the present population of insects in the entomological 
department nearly half a century later, especially after the 
huge accessions under his excellent keepership extending over 
a span of near 23 years. For it was in 1937 that the second 
Lord Rothschild died, leaving his immense collection of lepi- 
doptera to the Museum at South Kensington, and the whole 
Museum in which it was housed in Tring also became part of 
the national heritage. In 1939, the onset of the second world 
war saw the removal of a large portion of the insect collection 
to the West Country, while during the next six years the 
Museum survived many hazards, not least when a flying bomb 
fell just in front of it in Cromwell Road, damaging some of 
the insect collection in the south-west basement wing, and with 
some of the staff there having narrow escapes. In 1952, the 
collection of insects was transferred to a newly-built wing, 
where it now occupies five floors. Included in it is the 


20 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


Rothschild-Cockayne-Kettlewell collection, by far the biggest 
ensemble of British lepidoptera, which Riley helped to inaugu- 
rate in 1948. So that when he retired from being Keeper in 
1955, to be succeeded by Dr. W. B. China, through his wise 
and shrewd judgment and under his able administration, he 
left by far the largest assemblage of insects under one roof in 
any part of the world, and the most renowned of collections 
visited and studied by experts everywhere. 

During his time at the Museum covering over 60 years, 
his output of literature was remarkable, with a complete record 
of just over 400 items. The first of these appeared in 1913 in 
the Entomologist, which magazine he took over from Richard 
South in 1923, and became its editor (with the exception of a 
short break in 1952-53) for the next 36 years till 1959, when 
it was probably the best known journal of its kind in the 
world, until it ceased publication in 1973. Naturally most of 
his contributions found their way into the Entomologist, 
including obituaries of 44 eminent entomologists. He had a 
great aptitude for writing obituaries, the first of which seems 
to have been on Fruhstorfer in 1922, followed by that on 
Charles Oberthiir in 1924. In 1937 he extolled the qualities of 
the redoubtable Lord Rothschild, and after the war, those of 
the great Karl Jordan, who died in 1959 at the age of 97, and 
finally Francis Hemming in 1964. But the versatility of his pen 
was very wide, mainly where descriptions of butterflies were 
concerned. In 1923, he wrote up the butterflies brought back 
from the 1921 Mount Everest expedition, in the Transactions 
of the Entomological Society of London, to which he also con- 
tributed freely over the years, as well as papers in the pub- 
lications of the Natural History Museum. As already men- 
tioned, the output of these papers and notes continued with- 
out a break right through the 1939-45 war and well into the 
1960’s on a great variety of subjects, including conservation 
and innumerable observations in the field. All his accounts and 
descriptions of a large number of new species were carried out 
with the same care and attention to detail, but chiefly on 
superficial features of the insects. The microscope and other 
scientific aids do not seem to have played a part in any of this 
work, and apparently he never undertook any major mono- 
graph on any special group of butterflies. 

It was in the middle 1960’s that Dr. Lionel Higgens 
mentioned to Riley, that no comprehensive book had been 
written on the butterflies of Europe since the great work of 
Lang in 1884. It was decided to compile an up-to-date new 
book easily readable and not too bulky, and thus the birth of 
A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Britain and Europe was 
initiated. This eventually appeared in 1970, beautifully illus- 
trated by Brian Hargreaves and was at once a best-seller, with 
editions in no less than eight foreign languages. But not con- 
tent with being a co-author in this excellent work which has 
become a sort of “bible” to continental students of butterflies, 
in 1975 he published another field guide under his own pen, 


OBITUARY: NORMAN DENBIGH RILEY 21 


entitled The Butterflies of the West Indies, which remains as 
a fine monument to his memory and industry. 

For one with such wide interests in entomology, it is not 
surprising that he should have been associated with important 
positions both at home and abroad. He attended most of the 
International Congresses of Entomology between the wars, and 
the five held after 1945, at Stockholm (1948), Amsterdam 
(1951), Montreal (1956), Vienna (1960) culminating with that 
held in London in 1964. In 1948 he became Permanent Secre- 
tary to these Congresses, and did invaluable work in helping to 
organise them. He also, in 1950, became one of the chief com- 
missioners on the International Commission of Zoological 
Nomenclature, a post he held with distinction till 1965. All 
this work in so many spheres of entomology was recognised in 
1952 by the honour of the award of the C.B.E. 

Naturally many societies numbered Riley as one of their 
most eminent and staunchest members. For he joined the 
Entomological Society of London in 1912, became its Secretary 
from 1926 till 1929, and again occupied this position, after 
being Treasurer 1939-1940, for ten years from 1941 to 1951, 
was President in 1951 and 1952 and became a Life Fellow in 
1959. He was for many years too, a Fellow of the Zoological 
Society of London and of the Suffolk Natural History Society. 
But it was perhaps the South London Entomological and 
Natural History Society (now the British Entomological and 
Natural History Society) which was dearest to his heart. This 
body he jointed as far back as 1908, when such “‘giants”’ as J. 
W. Tutt, H. Rowland-Brown and G. H. Verrall were still very 
much alive. He was by far its oldest and most distinguished 
active member, becoming its President in 1923 and 1924, and 
seldom missed attending its Annual Exhibition each autumn. 
He was elected an Honorary member of this Society in 1959. 

In 1912, he attended his first Verrall Supper, which 
suppers were inaugurated to carry on the tradition of its cele- 
brated founder, G. H. Verrall, who began them in 1887. From 
that date it is doubtful if he ever missed being at one of these 
annual assemblages of entomologists in general, who until 
1952 used to meet in the old Holborn Restaurant, with the 
modest number of about a hundred. By the time he made 
his last attendance at this function in 1978, where it is now 
held in the large refectory of Imperial College, the figure had 
grown to over three-hundred. The success of these gatherings 
was very much due to the efforts of Norman Riley, who 
undertook the organisation of them soon after the end of the 
last war, and only relinquished this task quite recently when 
ill-heath began to overtake him. These gatherings were latterly 
much sponsored by the Entomological Club, the oldest body 
of its kind, with its members presiding each year at the Verrall 
Supper, including Norman Riley who had been associated with 
the Club for many years. 

In the running of this notable annual occasion, as with 
many others of his activities, he was helped throughout by 


22 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


Edith Riley, who was a great support to him during their near 
60 years of married life. Almost every year used to see Norman 
and Edith in some part of Europe, always armed with a net. 
Though he never made a_ personal collection, he always 
deposited the fruits of the chase in the Museum. Only in 1970, 
apart from attending the Congresses, did he venture to Africa 
when he visited Uganda just before the onset of the Amin 
régime. He was a great raconteur with a fine sense of humour, 
especially in matters entomological. These included many 
anecdotes. One such delightful incident he use to recount, took 
place many years ago in the Pyrenees when he was collecting 
with one of the Adkin family. The wives were sitting down 
watching operations when a French couple came along. The 
young woman enquired what the two men were doing with 
their nets, to which came the answer “They appear to be 
catching butterflies”. ‘““But they look quite intelligent” came 
the disarming reply. 

The amusement he derived from this episode typifies the 
happy and cheerful outlook Norman Riley had on most aspects 
of life. He admired frankness and high integrity of character, 
and was a staunch and good friend to all who gained his con- 
fidence. A very popular and well-loved figure has gone from 
our midst, the like of whom we may not see for a very long 
time. All who had the privilege of knowing him must wish to 
express their sympathy to his widow and other members of his 
family extending to the fourth generation. — C. G. M. DE W. 


Notes and Observations 


NOTES ON, AND THE APPARENT EXTINCTION OF, THE CHALK- 
HILL BLUE: LYSANDRA CORIDON L. IN LINCOLNSHIRE. — On the 
day when the paper and wireless contrived together to tell us 
that the Large Blue was extinct in England, Mr. Les. Hare 
came to see us. I think the sad news may have spurred him, 
but he had other sad news, which, alas, I could confirm. 
Lysandra coridon seems to have disappeared from its small 
habitat north of Grantham. He had been there early in August: 
I had been there late in August. Our friends had been in 
between, but all without avail. The N.C. notice of the Nature 
Conservancy does not seem to have been effective. We think 
the foodplant has been ousted. But we look back on the days 
when coridon flew there. I remembered taking two specimens, 
which I sent to the Museum at Tring. He had other memories, 
for Les is a photographer of no mean talent. 

It was, he said, a sunny August — mid-August — day a 
few years back when he and his wife set out to observe coridon 
flying on the narrow strip of grass, about three metres wide 
and about half a kilometre long, that lines the left side of the 
hill as one goes up it to where the road forks. There are some 
small trees and growth in about the middle, but we usually 
like the top stretch. Mrs. Hare sat in her deck chair near the 
car reading, while Les went to see the oviposition by coridon 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 23 


females amongst the grass in the area that we like so much 
down the hill. Before long, a purposeful female hove in sight 
and nose-dived into the grass. Les followed the flight. No 
egg had been dropped at the bottom of the flight path. She was 
too cunning for that. She wandered to right and to left and 
then... an egg. Gently laid. With glasses in hand, Les watched. 
She flew about ten centimetres to the left, and then . 
another egg. Again she moved, again ten centimetres but at 
forty-five degrees to the last line of flight, and then... a 
third egg — in a perfect equilateral triangle. 

Les lay flat on the grass, watching. First there came 
another female, and then yet another, always laying in the 
same pattern. He was recalled to other things by a man’s stern 
voice saying: ‘“‘Are you all right, sir?”’ He looked up to see 
the biggest pair of boots he had seen for ages, looked higher, 
and looked into the face of a policeman. “I’m watching a 
chalk hill blue lay eggs’, he said with perfect truth. “Now, 
old man’’, said the bobby, “that there butterfly is brown and 
not blue, and butterflies don’t lay eggs. They just have cater- 
pillars. Sure you’re all right?’’ Les had got up by now. He 
handed his spy glass to the arm of the law. He pointed to a 
female about to do her stuff and whispered, ““Get down and 
watch her through the glass”. The policeman did as he was 
bidden. He mouth got wider and wider, and at last, with a 
rather fierce oath, he said: ‘““****! ***! You’re right; she has 
laid an egg’”’. The other policeman in the panda car went on 
reading. Perhaps he was too hard-boiled to care! — CANON 
PETER HAWKER, St. Botolph’s Vicarage, South Park, Lincoln. 

ANTHOCHARIS CARDAMINES L. IN CUMBRIA. — It might be 
of interest to append a footnote to Albert G. Long’s interesting 
Sha of the “Return of the Orange-tip” (Ent. Rec., 91: 

During the 42 years during which I have lived in what is 
now Cumbria, the Orange-tip has been a reasonably common 
butterfly. From 1951 to 1962 it flew regularly in our garden at 
Hutton Roof Vicarage, near Kirkby Lonsdale in South West- 
morland, and was quite common in the surrounding country- 
side, particularly in the Morecombe Bay area — Arnside, 
Witherslack, etc. From 1962 to 1977 it likewise flew in our 
garden at Threlkeld Rectory, near Keswick, and was common, 
especially northwards towards the Solway, where, in the low- 
lying plain, it has to my knowledge been particularly in 
evidence ever since I came to these parts in 1938. Now I have 
retired to Melmerby, at the foot of the western escarpment of 
the Northern Pennines, it again flies in our garden and is 
frequent all around, but it does not penetrate at all high into 
the Fells either here, or in the Lake District. Our houses at 
Hutton Roof, Threlkeld and at Melmerby have all been around 
the 500 ft. contour, and I believe the butterfly soon disappears 
above that height. But I would say that on the lower ground 
in Cumbria, its numbers have not varied a great deal during 
the past 40 years. — The RevEREND J. H. Vine HALL, 3 The 
Green, Melmerby, Penrith, Cumbria. 


24 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


OSERVATIONS ON APATURA IRIS L. — The encounters of J. 
E. Green (Ent. Rec. 91: 195 (1979)) with this species recall a 
similar experience in 1978. I had suggested to my son, David, 
that we should “‘go and look for Purple Emperors”. Since the 
journey involved was only some 20 miles we risked the weather 
becoming worse than it was at the time, and arrived in what 
could charitably have been called unpropitious conditions. _ 

Despite only a fitful glimpse of sun, walking up the main 
ride we saw iris descend in front of us, and a careful approach 
revealed it on a dry fox-dropping. It too, wandered around, 
probing the ground with its tongue, and totally unworried was 
photographed from 2 feet range. Thinking it might be thirsty, 
I licked my finger and placed it alongside His Majesty, who 
promptly climbed aboard and was photographed by David. 
Fingers and cameras were then exchanged for a repeat opera- 
tion. It was we, in this instance, who gave up first and went 
away. — A. J. SHowLER, 12 Wedgwood Drive, Hughenden 
Valley, High Wycombe, Bucks. 


THERA JUNIPERATA L.: JUNIPER CARPET IN WARWICKSHIRE. 
— With reference to R. G. Warren’s note (1979, Ent. Rec., 
91: 142) on Thera juniperata L. in this county, the following 
additional records may be of interest. On 20th October 1975, 
several of these moths were found on farm buildings at Mar- 
ton, between Leamington Spa and Rugby, by the farmer, Mr. 
Graham Robson, who invited me over to confirm his identi- 
fication. We traced the probable foodplant — two species of 
dwarf juniper on the farmhouse lawn which came from a 
Rugby nursery. In October 1978 we found the insect in pro- 
fusion and two of the prostrate form of juniper were found to 
be in poor condition as a result of the depredations of the 
larvae — the bushes have since died. 

On the 14th October 1977, one was taken at a street 
lamp at Bilton, a district of Rugby within a half-mile of the 
above-mentioned nursery. In October 1978, Mr. Andrew Gard- 
ner recorded two in his light-trap at Charlecote, and a third at 
nearby Thelsford Juniperata occurs in a list of 232 species 
recorded from Hartshill Hayes, Atherstone (near Nuneaton) 
by Mr. R. J. Thomas between 1975 and 1979. Finally, a dead 
imagine was found in Mr. Eric Sharman’s house at Lillington, 
Leamington Spa, in mid-October 1979. The Marton, Charle- 
cote, and Leamington specimens were all of the larger Southern 
form. It seems very likely that the nurseryman must be a 
highly suspect, albeit unwitting, agent of juniperata’s wider 
distribution. — RoGer SmitH, Warwickshire Lepidoptera 


Survey, c/o Warwickshire County Museum, Market Square, 
Warwick. 


THE JUNIPER CARPET: THERA JUNIPERATA L. IN BEDFORD- 
SHIRE. — On the evening of 12th October 1979 a single speci- 
men of this moth was obtained by D. V. Manning from his 
outside porch light at Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire. The identity 
of this species being subsequently confirmed by Ian Woiwood 
of Rothamsted Experimental Station, Harpenden. As the 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 25 


Juniper (Juniperus communis) was last recorded in Bedford- 
shire in 1889 (Bedfordshire Plant Atlas — Dr. J. G. Dony) this 
moth must be feeding on either a species of Juniper grown in 
gardens, or on Cupressus. This latter remark would fit in with 
the article by R. G. Warren (1979, Ent. Rec., 91: 142). This 
is the first county record for this species from Bedfordshire. — 
V. W. ArnoLp, Moth Recorder for the Bedfordshire Natural 
History Society, 96 St. Augustine Avenue, Luton, Beds. 


FOODPLANTS OF TYRIA JACOBAFAE L. (CINNABAR). — I was 
interested to read Mr. Jackson’s note concerning this subject 
(Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var. 91: 139). It reminded me that I 
was present at a field meeting at Bricket Wood, Herts. in 1940 
when we found quite a large colony of this moth feeding on 
Coltsfoot. The matter was recorded by the leader of the 
expedition, the late R. B. Benson (Entomologist, 73: 236). I 
do not think any of the larvae were taken to establish their 
viability to maturity on the unusual foodplant. However, Ben- 
son records that coltsfoot is given as a substitute foodplant for 
larvae in captivity by A. G. Scorer in his familiar ‘Log Book’. 
— Dr. Nevitte L. Birkett, Kendal Wood, New Hutton, 
Cumbria. 


THE CLOAKED PuG (EUPITHECIA ABIETARIA GOEZE): FUR- 
THER RECORDS. — Further to the Note on this moth (in Ent. 
Rec., 91: 220), I can cite four more records of its occurrence 
since the war. (1) Oatlands, Surrey, one in a light trap, July 
8th 1952 (R. F. Bretherton, List of Macrolepidoptera and 
Pyralidae of North-west Surrey, Proc. S. Lond. ent. nat. Hist. 
Soc., 1955: 138). (2) Streatham, ? on a fence, June 15th 1957, 
P. A. Cordell (L. K. & K. G. W. Evans, A Survey of the Macro- 
lepidoptera of Croydon and North-east Surrey, Proc. Croydon 
Nat. Hist. Sci. Soc., X¥V: 322. (3) Mitcheldean, Glos., one 
taken by M. J. Leech, July 6th 1979 (M. J. Leech pers. 
comm.). (4) Birnam, Perthshire, ? in light trap, July 22nd 
1979 (D. Coates pers. comm.). — J. M. CHALMERS-HUnT. 


DEPRESSARIA EMERITELLA STAINTON (LEP. : OECOPHORIDAE). 
— Some time ago a Dutch collector showed me a specimen of 
this conspicuous Depressaria caught in Dutch Limburg. The 
discovery of this new addition to the fauna of the Netherlands 
necessitated a perusal of the literature. I shall only quote some 
details which may be of interest to British lepidopterists. 

Stainton named the species in 1849 (Trans. ent. Soc. 
Lond., 5: 167). At that time no British captures of emeritella 
were known. In 1861 he amply discussed the species and gave 
coloured figures of moth and caterpillar (Nat. Hist. Tineina, 6: 
230-239, pl. 7). He wrote that the caterpillar can be found at 
the end of June and the beginning of July on Tanacetum 
vulgare L. (Tansy), some leaves of which it draws together. He 
also stated that one specimen had been taken in England, but 
that the locality was not known. From this it is clear that 
Stainton could not have found the caterpillar himself. Although 
he did not exactly say so he must have had the knowledge of 
the biology from the senator C. H. G. von Heyden, the only 


26 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


entomologist at that time who had found the caterpillars (near 
Frankfurt am Main, cf. also Zeller 1854, Linn. ent. 9: 322- 
324), and who no doubt sent one or more caterpillars to Stain- 
ton to be figured in his book. Up till now Stainton’s description 
of the larva and its biology is the only one available and it is 
copied more or less literally by all subsequent writers. The 
only author who added something new is, as far as I can see, 
A. Grabe, who writes that the caterpillar pupates on the 
ground but when bred often in its spinning (1955, Kleinsch- 
metterlinge des Ruhrgebietes, Mitt. Ruhrlandmus. Stadt Essen 
nr, 177: . 90). : 

Stainton’s assertion that one specimen of unknown locality 
had been taken in England is repated by Meyrick (1895, 
Handb. Br. Lep: 627, 1928, Revised Hanb. Br. Lep.: 681) and 
by Jacobs (1951, The British Oecophoridae II( Proc. Trans. S. 
Lond. ent. nat. Hist. Soc., 1949-1950: 197). However another 
Dutch lepidopterist directed my attention to F. O. Morris, A 
Natural History of British Moths (1872). This author writes 
(vol. 4: 62): ‘Localities for the species are near Warrington. 
.. . For information about ,and a beautiful drawing of this 
species, I have to thank C. S. Gregson, Esq.”’. A description of 
the species is not given and the figure is worthless. 

Gregson’s name is of course well-known to those who are 
acquainted with the older English entomological literature. 
But as I wanted more information I asked Mr. Chalmers-Hunt. 
He answered that Gregson was a superb field worker and that 
he had no positive evidence that he was ever untrustworthy. 
“One would like to be able to trace the fate of many of his 
micros and to check if emeritella really was among them, but 
after such a lapse of time (he died in 1899), this could be very 
difficult. Gregson’s first collection was incorporated in that of 
Sydney Webb about 1888, and Webb’s collection was sold by 
auction, that part containing the micros on 9th April 1920. 
The Depressarias were included in lots 190, 191, 236 and 237, 
all of which were bought by F. Whittle except 190 which went 
to L. W. Newman. Newman’s stuff could have gone anywhere, 
but Whittle left his collection to the B.M. However, Mr. D. 
Carter told me there appear to be no emeritella there from 
Gregson and no British examples with locality labels’’. 

So far our Editor. The whole matter depends on the 
question whether Gregson knew Stainton’s description and 
figure, for in that case a mistake with such an easily recog- 
nizable species by such an excellent collector would seem to be 
practically impossible. But I fear that this puzzle cannot be 


solved. — B. J. LempxKe, Oude Yselstraat 12 ITI, 1078 CM 
Amsterdam. 


STILPON NUBILUS COLL. (DIPT.: EMPIDIDAE) NEW TO 
Kent. — This tiny but distinctive fly is seldom recorded: 
Collin (1961, Brit. Flies, 6 (1): 58) knew of only five British 
specimens, from Dorset, Lancs., Bucks., and, in Ireland, Co. 
Meath. Chvala (1975, Faun. ent. Scand., 3: 294) referring to 
northern Europe states that it is widespread but everywhere 
uncommon, Occurring in grasses but mainly on sandy coasts, 
and that M. Ackland took specimens on a stone path in his 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 27 


garden at Oxford. I.F.G. MacLean (1978, Ent. Rec., 90: 325) 
records it as found commonly in a greenhouse in Norwich, 
“running over gravel-covered benches and amongst pots con- 
taining grass”’. 

On 15th July 1967, I took three examples of a Stilpon (2 
od, | 2) in my former garden at Blackheath, only this year 
securely identified as nubilus. They were in debris accumulated 
under a tile placed as a beetle-trap against a wall of the house, 
where the soil was a little gravelly. Like others of the genus, 
the fly is usually of retiring habits and more likely to be 
encountered by coleopterists than by dipterists. This should be 
the first Kent record of S. nublilus. 

Hitherto the name Stilpon has for some reason been 
treated as feminine; but Mr. MacLean is correct in makings it 
masculine, as shown by its derivation. It is a rare dialect word 
for a dwarf, which the late Greek author Athenaeus tells us 
was in use among the Sybarites, and is, of course, a masculine 
noun. There can be no question therefore that we should write 
S. nubilus, S. lunatus, etc. — A. A. ALLEN. 


ALMOST ANYWHERE . . . RATHER THAN ESSEX. — My 
friends are pulling my leg and telling me that I should let Mr. 
Wykes’ onslaught on the entomological credentials of Essex 
pass without response; but as I agree with everything, or 
almost everything, he says both about butterflies and land 
usage, I can answer only by changing the subject. He is in- 
correct in claiming that we are completely without heathland 
and sand-dunes, though the little we have is nothing to boast 
about. He is more wrong about our woods which are much 
better and more plentiful than he supposes as a glance at 
Map 13 entitled “Forest and Woodland” in Jermyn’s Flora of 
Essex (1974) will show. Their quality improves as you go 
north-westwards and examples like Great and Little Bendysh 
Woods, Rowney Wood, Hales Wood and Little Hales Wood, 
woods well administered by the Forestry Commission, are 
entomologically very good indeed. However, butterflies are Mr. 
Wykes’ theme and he is dead right when he says that Essex is 
not the county for them: even the north-western woodlands 
boast relatively few species. 

Happily, the same does not apply to our moths; for them 
Essex, although neglected, is one of the best counties in the 
south of England. For the sake of the incredulous and the 
prejudiced I shall quote figures to prove it. Mr. Wykes lived 
at Leighton-Sea, which is situated in the 10 x 10 kilometre 
square TQ 88; 45% of this square is salt water and “the all- 
consuming tentacles of the Greater Southend Octopus” grasp 
most of the remainder. Yet 628 species of Microlepidoptera 
are recorded from the square, which is 60% of the Essex total. 
I do not know the figure for the Macrolepidoptera but the 
proportion should be higher because of the late Harry Huggins’ 
light-trap; but at the same 60% we get a grand total of nearly 
1,050 species from, let me remind you, an incomplete and 
densely populated square. The late Denzil Ffennell reached 
1,000 species at Martyr Worthy in Hampshire and this is 


28 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1/80 


commonly regarded as a national record; yet Essex seems to 
do better. Here is a challenge: can you beat Southend? 

My second defence witness, or witnesses, are the Nep- 
ticulidae, because I happen to know the number recorded from 
each vice-county in the British Isles. Here are the leaders of 
the first division: — 1. Dorset (VC 9), Mr. Wykes’ adoptive 
county — 75 species; 2. South Hampshire (VC 11) and 
North Essex (VC 19) — 74 species; 4. West Kent (VC 16) — 
73 species; 5. Surrey (VC 17) — 72 species; 6. South Essex 
(VC 18) — 71 species. 

I hope these facts will convince you that Essex produces 
good moths as well as good cricketers. My advice to the young 
student and lover of moths is to go to Essex, the entomolo- 
gically forgotten county, the county of prizes and surprises. 

P.S. I have just received from the Rothamsted Research 
Centre a paper entitled Perspectives in urban entomology (ed. 
G. W. Frankie and C. S. Koehler, 1978). Map 8, although its 
printing is rather blurred in my copy, appears to show that the 
mean number of macrolepidoptera recorded in traps between 
1968 and 1974 was higher in central Essex than elsewhere in 
south-eastern England. — A. M. Emmet, Labrey Cottage, 
Victoria Gardens, Saffron Walden, Essex. 17.xii.1979. 


SYNGRAPHA CIRCUMFLEXA L.: YORKSHIRE Y. — On 29th 
July 1979 I found in my m.v. trap here a single specimen of a 
moth since identified for me by Mr. D. Carter of the British 
Museum (Natural History) as Syngrapha circumflexa L. 

The species is a native of the Atlantic Islands, Africa 
and parts of S.E. Europe, its range extending to Asia Minor 
and Central and Southern Asia. The British Museum possesses 
examples from many localities over this range, but no British 
specimen. Its history in Britain can only be described as con- 
fused, appearing to rest on a single specimen said by Haworth 
(1802, Prodromus, 16; 1809, Lep. Brit., 257) to have been 
taken by a Mr. Drury in Essex at some time prior to 1802, and 
called by him “The Essex Y”. Haworth also mentions having 
seen the moth in two other collections, but gives no particulars, 
which he would certainly have done if data had been available 
since he was in dispute with Donovan about the species at the 
time. E. Donovan (1808, Brit. Insects, 12: 53, plt. 412) calls 
what must have been the same specimen “The Yorkshire Y”, 
stating that it had been captured by Mr. Drury in Yorkshire. 
This was at once disputed by Haworth, and it appears that 
Donovan confused the moth with another species. This has 
ben repeated by others, but the moth is not mentioned by 
Barrett or Meyrick, or in any edition of South. 

It appears probable, therefore, that S. circumflexa has 
not been recorded in Britain since 1802. If so, it cannot be a 
great traveller, and it is perhaps permissable to suggest that 
the two certain specimens may have taken passage, the one 
to the Port of London and the other to the Solent. I am 
grateful to Mr. Carter for identifying the moth. — REAR 
ApMiRAL A. D. Tortesse, 1 Sway Lodge, Lymington, Hants. 


EXCHANGES AND WANTS 


Wanted — Records of Hamearis lucina (Duke of Burgundy) in Dorset, past 
or present. Also comments or observations on any aspect of its behaviour — 
for example, mate location, courtship, copulation and egglaying. — Mr. 
W. G. Shreeves, 5 Butts Mead, Shaftesbury, Dorset. The information is 
required for a study of this butterfly’s requirements on Naturalist’s Trust 
conservation areas. 


For Sale — One W & D Standard Robinson trap with 80w bulb and choke, 
£25.00. Two “Skinner type’’ 20w actinic traps with tubes and chokes, £25.00 
each. One ‘“‘Heath type” 6w actinic trap with tube and 12v inverter, £20.00. 
Two collapsible “‘Robinson type” traps with bulbs and chokes in transport 
cases, £50.00 pair. Two cable reels with approx. 100 yds. cable, and plugs, 
£6.00 each. Two electric time switches, £5.00 each. Honda E 300 generator 
V.G.C., £100.00. Forty larvae boxes, plastic, 6” x 4” x 2”. Sixty 23” dia. 
plastic ova boxes, £12.50. — Rex Lane Harvey, The Flat, Pembroke Garage 
Ltd., H.M.S. Pembroke, Chatham, Kent. Phone Medway 44310 anytime. 


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CONTENTS 


Six Further New Butterflies from Southern Africa. C. G. C. 
DICKSON noe ane an 


An Unconfirmed Record of the Green REEMA Shark: 
Cucullia argentea (Hufn.) in Britain. Dr. I. D. WALLACE ... 4 


Notes on the Donaciini (Col.: Chrysomelidae), with a List of Recent 
East Kentish Localities known to the Author. J. A. PARRY ... 9 


Further Observations on the Species of Utetheisa Huebner (Lep.: 
Arctiidae) in the Western and Central Pacific with the Descrip- 
tions of a New Species from Niue Island. Dr.. G. S. ROBINSON 
and H. S. ROBINSON a oes ua ee a Aes 13 


Practical Hints — March ... a = ace ee ae we 18 
Notes and Observations: 
An Unlikely Find in a N.E. Surrey Garden. A. A. ALLEN ... 
Agrotis puta (Huebner) in Cumbria. Dr. N. L. BIRKETT 
Early Date for the December Moth: Poecilocampa populi (L.). 


DS DBEY) i: 6 oe aoe ue a Py BE 12 
An Apology. E. H. WILD ... ae Ned a £35 =e 12 
Notes on, and the Apparent Extinction of, the Chalkhill Blue: 
Lysandra coridon L. in Lincolnshire. CANON HAWKER ... 22 
Anthocharis cardamines L. in Cumbria. Rev. J. H. VINE- 
Observations on Apatura iris L. Dr. A. J. SHOWLER ... Hi 24 
Thera juniperata L.: byes wei in Warwickshire. R. 

SMITH... a ‘ 24 
The Juniper Carpet: Thera juniperata L. in Bedfordshire. V. 

W. ARNOLD ta a es: 3) ; 24 
Foodplants of aiid staan 1 Ceanean: Drona. 

BIRKETT Bi 25 
The Cloaked Pug (Eupithecia abietaria Goeze): Further 

Records. J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT ... es ae a 25 
Depressaria emeritella Stainton ea aime Be 

LEMPKE Tee : 26 
Stilpon nubilis Coll. (Dipt.: haar 5 New to Kent. A. A. 

ATEEN Ti ser 26 
Almost Anywhere . . . rather than Essex. Lt. Col. A. M. 

EMMET ay, eae ; aie 27 
Syngrapha circumflexa L.: Yorkshire Y. Rear Admiral A. 

Dy TOREESSE 4 s.- ‘ 3 : : 28 
Current Literature ... ae — sks AS ba Ber: tee SG 
Obituary: 

Norman Denbigh Riley, C.B.E... 19 
The Butterflies and Moths of Kent, Volume 2M ‘CHALMERS- 
HUNT Ns4 wee a we soe fide oe Ba C211) 


Printed by Charles Phipps Ltd., 225 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4HL 


| 
OL. 92, No. 2 


February, 1980 ISSN 0013-8916 


ch eat, ah, a, ah, ae, ED, 


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995.7059 
jas THE 
ENTOMOLOGIST’S 


RECORD 


AND JOURNAL OF VARIATION 


Edited by J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT, F.R.E.s. 
with the assistance of 


A. A. ALLEN, B.SC., A.R.C.S. P. J. CHANDLER, B.SC., F.R.E.S. 
NEVILLE BIRKETT, M.A., M.B. C. A. COLLINGWOOD, B.SC., F.R.E.S. 
S. N. A. JACOBS, F.R.E.S. J. HEATH, F.R.E.S., F.L.S. 


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29 
Obituary 
The Baron C. G. M. de Worms 
By J. L. MESSENGER * 

The sudden death of Charles de Worms on the 10th 
October last at the age of 76 will come as a sad blow to his 
very large circle of friends both within and outside entomo- 
logical circles. 

He was the son of the Baron Anthony de Worms of 
Milton Park, Egham, Surrey where he spent much of his 
earlier life and where his lifelong interest in entomology had 
its beginnings. It was there that he began to build up his out- 
standing collections which, with his diaries, now pass under 
his Will to the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh, whilst 
his Entomological Library is left to the British Entomological 
and Natural History Society. 

The collection, which fills some 350 drawers, is very 
comprehensive as regards British macrolepidoptera and con- 
tains many good series of rare and possibly extinct species 
collected in the happier days of plenty with a number of good 
migrants and excellent aberrational forms. It is not possible 
within the space available to mention many of his interesting 
captures but perhaps the following should be recorded. On the 
5th November 1955 he took a specimen of Plusia acuta Wal- 
ker, which was the second British record of this inhabitant of 
Central Africa and in September 1959 he took the first 
recorded British example of Eupithecia phoeniciata Rambur, 
which came to light on the South Cornish coast. 

He was educated at Eton (1915-21) where he was a Kings 
Scholar and at Kings College, Cambridge, where he got a Second 
in Agricultural Chemistry. He obtained his Doctorate at London 
in 1934. During the years of 1925 to 1938 he carried out 
research work at the School of Agriculture, Cambridge, at 
Kings College, London, at the Government Laboratory, Lon- 
don, at the Royal Cancer Hospital and in the Laboratory of 
F. W. Edwards, F.R.I.C., the Public Analist for Westminster, 
Kensington and Hammersmith. 

During most of the war years he filled the post of an 
Experimental Officer at Porton, Wiltshire, under the Ministry 
of Supply doing special work on war materials. Between 1934 
and 1939 he published a number of papers in the Journal of 
the Chemical Society. 

The wartime posting fortuitously enabled him to spend 
a little spare time studying the lepidoptera of the Wiltshire 
Downs near Salisbury, an area on which he became very 
knowledgeable and where some interesting material in the 
collection came from. 

He joined the Royal Entomological Society in 1926 and 
the South London Entomological and Natural History Society 
in 1927, of which he became president in 1933. He was for 


half a century a regular attender of the meetings of both these 
societies. 


* Stonehaven, Wormley Hill, Godalming, Surrey. 


30 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


He was also a Fellow of the Linnean Society and a 
member of the British Ornithological Club at whose dinners 
and lectures he gave great pleasure by entertaining his ornitho- 
logically minded friends. 

He was, in fact, a keen ornithologist who attended many 
Congresses in distant parts of the world. He was also a mem- 
ber of a number of local Natural History Societies. 

After the war he was able to return to his first love — 
entomology — which he pursued wholeheartedly. He ran a 
M/V trap at his home near Woking, Surrey, but made fre- 
quent expeditions to other parts of the Country, accounts of 
which he regularly wrote up in the Entomological press. His 
interests, however, often took him to other parts of the world 
and in particular to Europe, from the Arctic to the Mediter- 
ranean and even as far as North Africa in addition to visits to 
Malaya, The Seychelles Islands, Canada and the West Indies. 
From all these places the collections were enriched. Whilst a 
good many of his captures made abroad were given to National 
Collections he retained his very considerable European col- 
lection which was strong in particular in the species of the 
difficult genus Erebia. 

His publications in the Entomological press and elsewhere 
were very numerous and of considerable importance. In par- 
ticular the following should be recorded: — 

(1) The Macrolepidoptera of Wiltshire (1962). This well 
illustrated work is a valuable addition to the County records, 
containing notes of every species found in the county with 
much information on locality and distribution. 

(2) Tne Moths of London and its Surroundings, published 
in “The London Naturalist” from 1953 with a number of 
supplements which appeared over many years and included 
details from the Buckingham Palace Gardens records of 1963 
onwards. 

(3) A series of papers dealing with additions to the list 
of British macrolepidoptera commencing with an article in 
1951 recording all known migrants which have appeared in 
the British Isles during the present century and their later 
status here. 

In addition to the above Charles de Worms will be long 
remembered for his annual reviews and his regular notes and 
articles dealing with his many entomological expeditions 
which, were things otherwise, would no doubt have been 
followed by an account of his records obtained during his last 
short visit to the Channel Islands a few days before he died. 

He was indeed a true friend who kept in touch with 
fellow entomologists throughout the world; he was ever ready 
to help other collectors and share his wealth of knowledge and 
experience with them, and above all he was a most delightful 
companion. 

All readers of The Record will want to extended their 


sincere sympathy to his sister, his two nieces and the other 
members of his family. 


Sil 


Sterrha vulpinaria Herrich-Schafer (rusticata sensu 
auct.) [Lep.: Geometridae] and a second natural 
larval foodplant 


By BY-K. “West, BEd * 


Sterrha vulpinaria is still a common moth in extreme 
N.W. Kent, and is the species most commonly seen at rest on 
foliage and fences by day, sometimes as single specimens, but 
also often as considerable congregations within a very limited 
area, and these may give some clue regarding the probable 
food plant of the larva. This was confirmed in the case of the 
colony of moths seen annually in the vicinity of several 
isolated plants of Alyssum saxatile L. at Bexleyheath, reported 
in Ent. Rec., vol. 86, 1974. Showler and Huggins in Ent. Rec., 
vol. 66, 1954, relate their observations regarding congregations 
of this moth in the vicinity of elm scrub and ivy. Most of the 
congregations I have encountered have been associated with 
elms scrub, and usually some ivy has also been present, but 
there have been three exceptions — the colony at Bexleyheath 
associated with A. saxatile which flourished for over a decade, 
and two colonies at Dartford, one in 1977 associated with ivy 
(Hedera helix L.) and the other in 1978 associated with 
Clematis vitalba L. 

In July 1977 over a period of several days I noticed 
large numbers of S. vulpinaria settled upon ivy leaves and the 
south facing aspect of the fence which the ivy draped; also 
attached to this side of the fence was wire netting which had 
entrapped a considerable quantity of dead ivy leaves. No moths 
were observed on the north side of the fence. On June 7th 
1978, I carefully examined dead ivy leaves at the base of the 
fence and those enmeshed by wire netting, and from the en- 
trapped leaves I obtained seven nearly full-fed larvae which I 
thought were S. vulpinaria, but from the dead leaves on the 
ground only two. These larvae were placed in an opaque 
plastic container supplied with dead ivy leaves upon which 
they completed their growth, and on June 30th the first of 
five S. vulpinaria emerged, while on July 3rd one S. trigemi- 
nata Haw. appeared. When the larvae were found they were 
not observed feeding on ‘the dead ivy leaves, but the absence 
of any other vegetation in close proximity I think warrants the 
conclusion that the foodplant of the feral larvae was ivy in 
the form of dead leaves, and the larvae in captivity consumed 
only dead leaves. 

Along the half mile of fence were several similar sections 
draped with ivy, and some of these had elm scrub close by, but 
no other congregations of S. vulpinaria were seen in 1977, 
nor incidentally in 1978 or 1979, although singletons were 
noted. However, in July 1978 I came across a colony of the 
moths settled upon an east facing section of the fence and 
Clematis vitalba L. with which it was draped; this aspect of 
the fence also displayed wire netting with enmeshed clematis 


* 36 Briar Road, Bexley, Kent. 


32 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


leaves, although at the base of the fence there was a minimum 
of débris due to the tarmac footpath. More than a score of 
moths were seen on several days, the maximum being forty- 
three on July 25th. The west facing aspect of the fence was 
not easily accessible and was not examined. Unfortunately, I 
delayed examining dead clematis leaves this Spring until it 
was too late, and the site was devoid of moths at emergence 
time. Undoubtedly this colony was dependent on Clematis, 
and I hope that in the future another opportunity will arise 
to enable me to confirm Clematis vitalba as a natural foodplant 
of S. vulpinaria larvae. 

Showler (Ent. Rec., 66, 1954) notes a prefernce for shady 
fences for resting moths, and Huggins (Ent. Rec., 66, 1954) 
mentions a preference for tall banks with ivy and elm, half 
shaded by large elm trees, and I too have frequently found 
the moths in such situations. However, the colony dependent 
on A. saxatile at Bexleyheath breeds at the foot of a south 
facing wall within a quadrangle, and the moths which emerge 
in the morning often remain exposed to the sun, and only 
on the hottest days tend to move up the wall to seek shade 
beneath window ledges, or move further into shaded passages 
or doorways. Similarly, the colony of moths associated with 
ivy at Dartford in 1977 was fully exposed to the sun for much 
of the day, although some moths would receive intermittant 
shade from foliage. The situation of these local congregations 
of moths is directly dependent upon the larval site, and they 
are composed of freshly emerged moths. 

S. vulpinaria, although remaining common in the Dart- 
ford area is perhaps less numerous than formerly due to 
destruction of habitats. However, it does appear to be increas- 
ing its geographical range — Chalmers-Hunt (Ent. Rec., 81, 
1969, sup) records this tendency in a southwards direction, 
and thus inland, from extreme N.W. Kent; Evans and Evans 
(A Survey of the Macro-Lepidoptera of Croydon and N.E. 
Surrey) record that the moth was first seen in the area in 
1961, and that it has become not uncommon in the N.E. of 
the area having spread westwards from Kent: the Essex 
Naturalists’ Trust in its volume ‘A Guide to the Butterflies 
and Larger Moths of Essex’ records extension of range north- 
ward along the coast and also inland. 


EXTREME ABUNDANCE OF ECTOEDEMIA SUBBIMACULELLA 
(HAw.) IN BERKSHIRE (V.C. 22). — Whilst collecting at Silwood 
Park, near Sunningdale, on 31.x.1979, I found Ectoedemia 
subbimaculella extremely abundant. Many oak trees had mines 
in almost every leaf at low level (the tree tops were not 
investigated), and a large proportion of the leaves contained 
20-30 mines: one leaf which I have pressed has 62. Typically 
10-20 larvae have been able to feed up fully, so, unless there is 
a very high level of parasitism or pupal mortality, the density 
of this species at Silwood should be very high next year. — 


P. J. Jounson, 7 Haverhill Road, Horseheath, Cambridge, 
CB1 6QR. 15. xii.1979. 


33 


Epichoristodes acerbella Walker (Lep.: Tortricidae): 
first capture of the imago at large in Britain 
By A. A. ALLEN * 


On the night of 17th June 1979, [took an unfamiliar Tortricid 
moth in good but not absolutely fresh condition at rest on a fence 
close to a wall-lamp in a tree-lined by-way some ten minutes’ 
walk from my house in the Blackheath direction. I failed to 
identify it from any available illustration, but an opportunity 
occurred recently of showing it to Dr. J. D. Bradley (part- 
author of the new work on British Tortricoid Moths), who at 
once recognised it as the above — an insect hitherto little 
known to our lepidopterists. He tells me that there is no other 
much like it, and that it had not previously been found in the 
wild in this country; but only as a casual importation in the 
larval stage, on various plants (carnations, etc.) from Africa. 
There is a short notice of the species in Bradley, Tremewan, 
& Smith (1973: 126), where it is placed between Clepsis and 
Epiphyas in the Tortricinae. As it may be that no description 
or figure exists in readily accessible British works I give a 
brief description, taken from my specimen, for purposes of 
recognition: — 

Of about the size and shape of a small Epinotia solandriana L., 
but costa less arched; forewings noticeably narrow for a Tortricine, pale 
ochreous-buff, costally shaded with brown near base, more or less irregu- 
larly strewn with fuscous dots and specks; a fuscous-mixed fulvous 
blotch, in size about half width of wing, well defined above and inwardly, 
occupying the tornal area, extending outward in a point to base of 
termen, and inward as a narrow streak for some distance along hind 
margin. Hindwings pale shining whitish-brown. Palpi light fuscous, fore 
femora blackish above, legs otherwise pale. Patagia fulvescent in front, 
rest of body pale. 


Along the base of the fence on which the moth was found, 
common garden plants such as iris and hollyhock were growing 
mixed with various ‘weeds’ (and probably likewise on the far 
side which was out of sight), but they throw no light on the 
presence of E. acerbella at the spot. It can hardly be expected 
that this native of the tropics could withstand the rigours and 
vagaries of our climate long enough to breed and establish 
itself permanently, except perhaps in hothouses and the like; 
yet, as larvae probably often get imported, the moth could 
well turn up again in the open from time to time. Further, 
since its range in Africa is evidently wide, it may prove a 
somewhat hardy and adaptable species. 

I thank Dr. Bradley for identifying the specimen, and 
Lt.-Col. A. M. Emmet for his good offices in that connection. 


Reference 
Bradley, J. D., Tremewan, W. G., & Smith, A., 1973. British Tortricoid 
geo — Cochylidae and Tortricidae: Tortricinae. Ray Society, 
ondon. 


* 49 Montcalm Road, Charlton, London SE7 8QG. 


34 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


Further Reminiscences of a Butterfly Hunter 
By the Rev. J. N. MARCON * 


At an early age most boys collect something, whether it 
is stamps, birds’ eggs, cigarette cards, coins or even match- 
boxes. At nine or ten the craze overtook me: stamps and 
cards were the first enthusiasm. A cousin gave me an 8 in. store- 
box with a set Arctia caja in it. How proud I was of the bright 
colours of this moth; it was frequently fished out of the play- 
box to show other boys at school. 

Not much was added for a couple of years, but on a 
holiday at South Brent in Devonshire, walking up a lane 
several butterflies were spotted, including a Silver-washed 
Fritillary. The excitement was renewed; my Father hastily 
made me a sort of frame from strong wire, whilst my Mother 
sewed me up a homely net; and I sallied forth up the same lane 
with delight and expectation. 

Moths and butterflies were alike in their attraction in 
those days and any unoffending specimen imprisoned by the 
windowpane was added to the collection. I even put a moth 
into my spectacle case when out on a training day in the 
O.T.C. at Puttenham, discovered among the heather whilst 
preparing to charge! Light and sugar were activities after a 
first visit to the New Forest in 1922. I can still remember the 
thrill of catching the first valesina. But time for day and night 
pursuit of the hobby became inevitably restricted by the need 
for studying for a degree: so the craze had to be limited; 
butterflies were chosen, and it was not long ’ere an aberration 
became a very special acquisition. 

What an excitment it is for an entomologist to see a 
variety! They are always rare and requiring numbers of 
insects, much persistence and good fortune. It is a thrill which 
exceeds almost everything in life. It may be only a good 
minor, but the heart beats faster; and if a major it arouses 
the blood pressure to fever pitch! It may be minutes or hours 
or even days before the prize is safely in the pill-box, but what 
a sensation it is! 

In days gone by one used to reckon on the capture of one 
good variety each year and be satisfied with that: often 
fortune favoured an expansion of this, and some years quite a 
considerable enlargement. It was rare for all species to be 
scanty — as is our misfortune today; there were almost always 
one or two that were prolific, if one could discover which they 
were in time and have the leisure for a massive assault on their 
habitat; and then the fun and the dogged pursuit began! 

1933 was an exceptionally early spring and very warm — 
almost June weather for three weeks. A visit to Pamber 
Forest on May 22nd proved this; Argynnis euphrosyne males 
were worn and over, though a few females were about in 
reasonable condition. It was a week later, my car having a 
punctured radiator, that a friend took me from Chingford to 
Fisherlane, Dunsfold. Three or four other collectors had 
* Raydale, Fittleworth, Pulborough, Sussex. 


FURTHER REMINISCENCES OF A BUTTERFLY HUNTER 35 


already arrived; Argynnis selene being the main quarry as it 
was well out. I was fortunate in seeing a v. confluens the other 
side of a ditch; the sight made me so nervous it seemed many 
minutes before I could catch it. Walking a few yards further a 
female euphrosyne was fluttering along, divided between 
nectar from a late flowering Bugle and finding a suitable violet 
on which to lay an egg. Better have a look at it came the 
thought and the net was brought into play. It looked normal 
on the upperside, but in captivity the underside quickly showed 
the pearly spots on the hindwings to be black. F. W. Frohawk 
figures it in his Varieties of British Butterflies, plate 13 — ab. 
ater-marginalis. The only regret was it should have been 
caught a week earlier. 

Next year, living at Worthing, a young Balliol man came 
and asked to borrow some setting boards. At the inevitable 
discussion amongst collectors he said he had been up Salving- 
ton Hill to a wood at the top of the Downs where he’d seen 
four or five Polygonia c-album; and one was a ‘black devil’ 
similar to v. suffusa by F. W. Frohawk. Needless to say we 
set off at once to the wood through which a track ran. Hunt- 
ing for 14 hours produced no result save the sight of one hen 
c-album, quite typical. We gave up the search disconsolate — 
and for my part incredulous. In the afternoon my wife sug- 
gested a picnic somewhere with the children. The locality for 
a bughunter provided no difficulty — the wood on top of 
Salvington Hill! Back and forth I traipsed, in and out of glades 
but no sign of the ‘black devil’. At last returning to the car a 
c-album was spotted sunning himself high up on a hazel leaf. 
With a jump the net was within reach — quite normal. Sight- 
ing two others higher up, a long pole from the car had to be 
fetched. Alas, these were types too! At the end of the track 
where the car was parked, there low down on a bush was the 
coveted trophy. It has not fallen to my lot to capture as many 
of this form as Major General Lipscomb has of a similar form 
of Aglais urticae — his must be a record with the net — but 
the luck of the game has provided opportunity of securing 
three c-album y. suffusa (or, no doubt wrong-headly, as I 
should prefer to call them v. nigrocaria! ). 

Next day the New Forest was visited and a stay with Mr. 
and Mrs. Clarke. They were always most hospitable: a note 
says she always gave us two eggs and four rashers for break- 
fast ‘to stimulate the hunt’ — what price that nowadays? And 
one slept in a feather bed: once down one slept in the billows 
around and could hardly move — not that one wanted to 
after 6-8 hours on the slog! Clarke said he had missed a good 
Argynnis cydippe in Roe Wood and a black Limenitis camilla 
in Frame Wood. We decided to start with Roe, indeed stayed 
all day as cydippe were fairly numerous. Mr. Bright and his 
chauffeur had been there the day previously. Clarke stayed in 
one corner of a clearing with bushes and brambles, I in 
another. He was determined to catch what he called the 
‘Covered Wagon’ — I think that was the name of a song. 


36 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


Whenever we met he started to sing the ‘Covered Wagon’, 
have you seen it yet? No. After half an hour an odd beast was 
spotted: could it be the black hindwing one? It settled in an 
awkward place which took ten minutes to approach circu- 
spectly, and then only from underneath with three others on 
some thistles. All four were swept into the net and one was a 
slightly suffused hindwing female cydippe. The ticker added a 
few beats, but this was not IT. Five minutes later there was 
a shout from Clarke; he’d just missed the ‘Covered Wagon’ 
We chased madly round and eventually he to his corner. 
Presently there was a wild yell: he had boxed the “Covered 
Wagon’. It was the finest cydippe variety I had as yet seen — 
black hindwings with marginal fulvous spots and the forewings 
heavily fasciated. Needless to say we arrived home exhausted 
but exuberant: and did we down some cider? 

Later that year a picnic with the family was the cause of 
another delight. We had gone to the top of Chantry Hill, 
Storrington. The advantage of taking the car to the top, as 
one can still do today was a desideratum; the view on both 
sides is magnificent. Within a few moments I was on the North 
face of the Down, and a second or two later amongst the 
dozen or so Polyommatus icarus flying was a pink one. “There’s 
a variety here’, I stupidly shouted to the others, engaged in 
removing the tea basket from the boot. ‘Stupid’ because one 
should never speak when something good is sighted: it may 
fly away or, more likely, one would miss the prize. However it 
kindly obliged in flying around and was plainly visible amongst 
the others — presumably a kind of albino. F. W. Frohawk 
figures it in his Varieties of British Butterflies, var. opalizans, 
plate 28 (though it is more striking than in the copy I have). 

It is never the expected that happens. In mid-July 1939 
I went to the Chiddingfold Woods, with the intention of work- 
ing what fritillaries were available, starting in the Hambledon 
area Vann Copse, where the Craske brothers had collected 
with success: then moving to High Street Green, where a 
meadow by a stream invited inspection. Somewhat surprisingly 
Aphantopus hyperanthus were abundant and a certain number 
netted in the hopes of a var lanceolata. Working leisurely 
before long an odd one was seen; the rings round the underside 
spots were smoky yellow, not clean yellow. This induced a 
more exacting search. Before long an even odder one was in 
the net, an underside with a large deep black patch on one 
hindwing and the yellow veins showing through distinctly. It 
was figured in the South London Entomological Society Pro- 
ceedings 1939/40. Melanic? Yes. Homeotic? No-one seems 
to know as yet. The day ended with another smoky one rather 
better than the first. It looks as if all three are linked together 
with the same gene. It then rained in torrents, the car was 
bogged and only when three men came along were we able, 
with the aid of sacks, to get it on the highway again! 

Beeding proved prolific that same year for Lysandra 
coridon. Several collectors were at work both there and at 


FURTHER REMINISCENCES OF A BUTTERFLY HUNTER 37 


Erringham Down. One used to start at the latter in the morn- 
ing, the former in the evening. The tally included some not 
met with before, a bluey-black one v. plumbescens, three 
pulla, four viridescens and a well marked gynandromorph: 
but the best of the bunch came from Beeding, when the sun 
was so warm that the blues were flipping off their perch at 
6 p.m. Waiting until a cloud obscured it one hastened to the 
chalk pit, examining the undersides up the path; and there in 
the pit itself, visible several yards away was a heavily marked 
male ultra-radiata. Two days later working along the Down 
from the pit a curious male was flying, which seemed in the 
sunshine to have only two wings. It proved to be a fresh halved 
gynandromorph. One couldn’t believe it! 

Mr. Castle Russell tells of how he and his wife were 
examining coridon at Danbury, one of his favourite grounds. 
As they sat down to lunch his wife asked, ‘What luck?’. 
‘Nothing as usual’, he replied. ‘Then why didn’t you catch that 
semi-syngrapha close by?’. The question was repeated. ‘All 
right then’, and he got up to catch it—it was a halved gynandro- 
morph! On another occasion he was alone, away for a week. 
Having hunted fruitlessly for three days he was about to 
abandon it and go home. On the point of entering the car 
he noticed alongside it one of the best ultra-radiata females 
ever taken. He decided to stay the week as planned! 


UNUSUAL FOODPLANT FOR SATURNIA PAVONIA L. LARVAE IN 
Cumpria. — On 17th June 1979, Mr. and Mrs. J. Whiteside 
and myself, were vainly searching for Euphydryas aurinia 
(Rott.) on a small heath near Ennerdale, when we discovered 
several batches of pavonia larvae, in their first instar, all 
feeding on Tormentil, Potentilla erecta, which was in pro- 
fusion. This is not mentioned as a foodplant for this species in 
Larval Foodplants by P. B. M. Allan or by anyone else that 
I have heard of. There was no shortage of Heather and young 
Birch in the vicinity, but no sign of pavonia larvae on these. — 
J. Briccs, 5 Deepdale Close, Slackhead, Beetham, near Miln- 
thorpe, Cumbria. 


STIGMELLA MINUSCULELLA (HERRICH-SCHAFFER). — This 
leaf-miner of pear used to be taken sparingly at various scat- 
tered localities in southern England and Lancashire, principally 
in towns. During the present century it became scarce and the 
most recent records known to us are from Oxford in the 
1920s, where Professor E. R. G. Waters found it in his garden; 
and from Bournemouth, where Mr. S. C. S. Brown used to 
find mines “many years ago”. We have recorded it in two 
well-separated localities in 1979, first at New Malden, Surrey 
in an urban garden on the 24th July (vacated mines), and 
secondly in two generations near Manningtree in north-east 
Essex, on the 15th of August (vacated mines) and on the 10th 
of September (tenanted mines). — P. J. JoHNSON, 7 Haverhill 
Road, Horseheath, Cambs. and A. M. Emmet, Labrey Cot- 
tage, Victoria Gardens, Saffron Walden, Essex. 23.xii.1979. 


38 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


Six Further New Butterflies from Southern Africa 
By C. G. C. Dickson, M.Sc.* 


(Concluded from page 6) 


Stugeta bowkeri tearei subsp. nov. 

This is a very widespread member of the Stugeta bowkeri 
group, occurring as it does in much of the Transvaal, 
Rhodesia and Botswana; and, what is apparently the same 
insect, in at least part of the northern portion of South West 
Africa. It is characterised by the more prominent, general, 
white marking of the upperside and, from the material that 
has been used for comparison, its rather greater average size 
than in nominate bowkeri — with the increase in size very 
noticeable, in fact, in a number of specimens that have been 
seen, including Rhodesian ones. In both sexes the tails of 
the hindwing, at the ends of the veins 1b and 2, are longer 
than in the nominate race; and the shorter tail is less short in 
relation to the longer one in the present race. 

Male (Upperside) 

In the forewing the greater prominence of the white 
marking in comparison with nominate St. bowkeri is especially 
apparent in the more basal part of areas 4 and 5 — and it is 
usually more noticeable, also, postmedially in areas 1b and 2 
(particularly, as a rule, in 2). In the hindwing, the postmedial 
white marking generally extends further down the wing than in 
the nominate race, while it is also nearly always more clearly 
developed than in the latter race, on each side of the black or 
blackish marking close to and parallel with the margin, from 
area 5 downwards. 

Underside 

As in nominate race, if allowance is made for a small 
degree of individual variation in both races. The failure of 
the dark, irregular discal band of the forewing to extend out- 
wardly in area 4 so as to coalesce at this point with the pro- 
minent line parallel with the distal margin, in some speci- 
mens, is a variable feature of no significance, since it occurs 
in both races, although perhaps less frequently in the present 
one. 

Length of forewing: 15.25-18.25 mm (16.25 mm in holo- 
type). 

Female (Upperside) 

The greater proportion of the white marking in relation 
to the nominate female, is possibly even more marked than in 
the respective males. In some female specimens there mav be 
a greater proportion of white than blue colouring. (The 
nominate female does, however, itself bear more white than 
its own male). 

Underside 

As in nominate race, allowing for individual variation in 
specimens. 

Length of forewing: 16.25-22.0 mm (18.5 mm in allo- 
type). 

*“Blencathra”, Cambridge Avenue, St. Michael’s Estate, Cape Town. 


SIX FURTHER NEW BUTTERFLIES FROM SOUTHER AFRICA 39 


As regards the male genitalia, from specimens that have 
been examined there is a general tendency in the present 
taxon for the two spines at the distal end of the valve to lie 
closer to one another than in bowkeri bowkeri; also for the 
distal edge of the valve, beyond the point of origin of the 
spines, to incline more inwardly than in the latter taxon, There 
is not complete consistency in these features, but what appears 
to be an average difference in these respects may be considered 
to be of some significance in the case of subspecies of this 
group. 

An appreciable number of subspecies of St. bowkeri have 
been described from north of the Southern African zone, 
largely from portions of East Africa. As far as it has been 
possible to ascertain, none of these agree with the presently 
described one, fearei, if all features which are characteristic 
are taken into account — including the valves of the male 
genitalia (vide Stempffer, op. cit.). 

& Holotype, TRANSVAAL: Zoutpan [= Saltpan, Zout- 
pansberg], 17.11.1969 (G. A. Henning); British Museum Reg. 
No. Rh. 18686. 

2  Allotype, TRANSVAAL: | Saltpan, Zoutpansberg, 
5.iv.1965 (S. F. Henning); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 
18687. 

Paratypes in Coll. W. H. Henning: data as for holotype, 
one o& (G. A. Henning); 8.iv.1966, one female (G. A: 
Henning); 6.iv.1965, one o', three 29, 15.11.1969, one ¢ GS. F. 
Henning and, lastly, W. H. Henning); 17.11.1969, one o, one 
2, 6.1x.1971, one o (S. F. Henning); 13.11.1974, one ¢& (I. 
Bampton). Horns Nek, Pretoria, 20.ix.1977, one 9? (1.B.). 
Naboomspruit, 6.x.1977, one o (I.B.); 8.x.1977, one o& 
(S/F); Rashoop. | 4:1:1975; “ofie > giz 6 19.1x.1977; sone Co 
QWiUH.E): aax 75, sione' 9° (G:A.ED2 10.19 75¢one? ”, 
16.x.1975, one o, 28.xi.1976, one 2 (1.B.). Sheba Mine, 
Barberton, 4.xi.1973, one ° (E. L. Pringle). Silkaats Nek, near 
Pretoria, 8.ix.1973, one @ (G.A.H.). (All these localities in 
the Transvaal, and a number of specimens bred examples.) 

Paratypes in Coll. C. W. Wykeham: as _ holotype, 
8.xii.1970, two 29, 11.xii.1970, one 9 (C.W.W.). Munnik, Tvl., 
14.x11.1970, one & (C.W.W.). 

Paratypes in Coll. Dr. J. Kaplan: as holotype, 6.iv.1966, 
one) o>, 17:11.1969, ,one-g (G..A. Henning); 1.1971. one, 9, 
1.111.1969, one 9, 6.ix.1971, one o, one ? (Dr. J. Kaplan); 
Naboomspruit, 9.x.1967, one &@ (W. H. Henning). Vila Luiza, 
Mogcambique, 15.ix.1971, one 9. 

Paratypes in Coll. W. Teare: as holotpye, iii.1959, one o, 
one 2 (W.T.). 

Paratypes in Coll. National Museum, Bulawayo, 
Rhodesia: Strijdom Tunnel, N. of Louis Trichardt, N. Tvl., 
8.11.1969, one ? (Dr. N. Paterson). | , 

Paratypes in Coll. Transvaal Museum: as _ holotype, 
24.iv.1954, one 2 (R. Badham); iii.1959, one 2 (W. Teare). 


40 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


The above insect is named after Mr. W. Teare, of Benoni, 
Transvaal, with whom the author corresponded many years 
ago in connection with the regional variation which was 
apparent in populations of the present Lycaenid complex. 

While the three taxa of the Stugeta bowkeri group which 
have been dealt with in this paper are the ones that have come 
to mind initially as particularly requiring attention, it is fully 
realised that there are others in Southern Africa which may 
call for further attention in due course — including, possibly, 
one that is prevalent in Natal. Specimens from the Eastern 
Karroo which have been examined have differed to some 
extent from the nominate insect (and have shown some 
approach to henningi), as have others, in their own way, from 
the Western Cape in localities such as Beaufort West and ones 
in the Robertson Karroo, between Robertson and Worcester 
(Trimen having found the butterfly at Robertson, as long ago 
as 1876). The same insect occurs at Montagu, but there are 
not as yet very many records from the Cape South-Western 
Districts. No firm conclusions with respect to the relative 
status of all the members of the group can be drawn without 
close examination of thoroughly representative material from 
all the relevant localities. A point which does strike one is 
the manner in which the group as a whole (as it occurs in 
Southern Africa) has been so largely neglected in the past 
from this point of view. Shortly before submission of this 
paper, Mr. W. H. Henning stated in a letter to the writer: 
“Stugeta bowkeri henningi, ex Potchefstroom, lives only on 
Viscum (Loranthaceae), and St. bowkeri tearei on Ximenia 
caffra (Sond.) (Oleaceae). They are not interchangeable”’. 

The writer wishes to express his special thanks to Mr. W. 
H. Henning and his sons Stephen and Graham for their views 
covering the three taxa of this group and for the loan (and in 
some cases presentation) of invaluable material for study, 
dissection and description. A high proportion of the specimens 
concerned were either captured or reared by Mr. Ivan Bamp- 
ton, to whom the writer is equally grateful for having made 
these available in the first place. Mr. G. E. Tite, of Tring, 
gave some useful views on the group, some time ago. The 
essential help rendered by Mr. R. I. Vane-Wright of the Dept. 
of Entomology, British Museum (Nat. Hist.) has already been 
referred to in the earlier part of this paper. 

Poecilmitis wykehami spec. nov. 

Although at a first glance this insect might be taken 
for Poecilmitis turneri Riley, at least from its upperside, 
careful comparison reveals a number of features which, 
in the writer’s view, are sufficiently distinctive to entitle 
it to be regarded as a separate species. The most striking dis- 
similarity is noticeable on the underside of the hindwings and, 
from analogous cases in other species of the P. thysbe (L.) 
group which show close relationship to one another, this 
particular, decidedly well marked difference, is believed to 
be highly significant. This butterfly was found at an altitude of 
about 5,000 ft. above sea-level on the Hantam’s Berg (in the 


SIX FURTHER NEW BUTTERFLIES FROM SOUTHER AFRICA 41 


North Western Cape Province) — a fine mountain range 
which has received considerable attention, from the butterfly 
aspect, by the writer and, especially, Mr. C. W. Wykeham in 
more recent years. In the description which follows hereunder 
comparisons are made with P. turneri Riley (Trans. R. ent. 
Soc. London. 87 (10): 241-242, Pls. 1 and 2 (1938), from, and 
W. of, Matjesfontein in the Great Karroo. The specimen given 
as the allotype female, from Basutoland, in the foregoing 
paper is not being taken into account in the present context, 
the actual specimens of turneri utilised for direct comparison 
in this study being virtually topotypical ones from W. of 
Matjesfontein and occurring in true Karroo country. 

In the male the distal margin of the forewings is noticeably 
more rounded and, in both sexes, the anal-angular projection 
of the hindwings is a little shorter than in P. turneri. Judging 
by the material on hand, the present species also has the 
orange-red ground-colour of the upperside of a rather brighter 
and more red tone than in turneri. 

Male (Upperside) 

Dark basal colouring of all wings practically black, as 
against the greyish tone in turneri. Discocellular streak of 
hindwing absent, or nearly so (usually present as a dark or 
fairly dark streak in turneri). 

Underside 

Blackish streak parallel with the distal margin of the 
forewing is continuous and not broken into separate markings 
as in turneri, while the dark spotting tends to be more distinct 
in the lower portion of the wing than in this species. 

Hindwing with the spaces of light brownish ground-colour 
between the marking of the wing, more clearly and uniformly 
represented than in turneri. Marking in more basal portion of 
wing dark brown or even blackish-brown in parts, as against 
the essentially more rufous tone in turneri; and much more 
conspicuous than in this species. Light postdiscal marking 
and other light marking near base (of the characteristic P. 
thysbe type), clearly defined, and either whitish with little 
metallic sheen (as in the holotype) or silvery and markedly 
metallic; that of the postdiscal series consisting of short mark- 
ings in nearly all cases, without the general tendency, in 
turneri, of a rather acute outward prolongation of several of 
these markings. The postdiscal series with adjoining dark 
marking of the same tone as that towards the base and also 
clearly developed; and the individual markings basad of and 
touching the light liturae at least partly lunulate and dis- 
similar from any corresponding markings (should these be 
present, at all) in turneri. 

Length of forewing: 12.5 mm (in both holotype and one 
paratype). 

Female (Upperside) 

Distal margin of forewing pronouncedly convex. Basal 
marking in all wings decidedly more restricted than in male 
and also less deep in tone; but this marking (and its extension 


42 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


in hindwing within and along inner-marginal concavity) of a 
deeper or more blackish grey than in the female of turneri. 

Underside 

As in the male, generally, in all wings. Hindwing, in the 
allotype, particularly well marked, and also with a clouding of 
salmon tone distad of the postdiscal series and including quite a 
bright patch extending to the anal-angle. 

Length of forewing: 13.0 mm (in allotype). 

Body and ancillary parts, in both sexes, very much as in 
P. turneri. 

3 Holotype, WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE: Hantam’s 
Berg, Calvinia, 4.iii.1978 (C. W. Wykeham); British Museum 
Reg. No. Rh. 18688. 

2 Allotype, W. CAPE PROVINCE: data as for holotype, 
24.x.1977 (C.W.W); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18689. 

Paratype in Coll. C. W. Wykeham: data as holotype, one 
o (C.W.W.). 

Most of the specimens of the P. turneri group that have 
been seen from the Roggeveld Escarpment (Sutherland area) 
have shown affinity to P. wykehami as regards the form of 
marking of their hindwing undersides and even if this mark- 
ing has not been quite as striking in its clarity as in the present 
insect. On this account, it is felt that such specimens are con- 
specific with wykehami, but with two races probably being 
represented in such a case. Some small differences in other 
respects are apparent in these populations. A few specimens 
have, however, been taken on the Escarpment with the hind- 
wing underside quite as in turneri, and close to it, too, in 
various other features. This seems to suggest the occurrence 
of two species of the group in this area. The acquisition of still 
more material would be necessary before drawing any final 
conclusions. 

Specimens of the group from the Nieuweveld Mountains, 
N. of Beaufort West, differ decidedly from true P. turneri, 
with the hindwing underside marking of the basic form of 
that of wykehami and the more common Roggeveld taxon. if 
not identical to that of either of these insects. Its relative 
status would not be easy to ascertain without further investiga- 
tion based on fresher material than is at present available. The 
writer hopes to follow up the matter some time in the future. 

The extreme Eastern Cape representative of the P. turneri 
group, P. turneri amatola Dickson & McMaster, was described 
in Ent. Record J. Variation 79 (9): 209-211, Pl. XI (1967). 
After considerably more experience of this group, it is 
believed, now, that on account of the constant and very clear- 
cut characters it exhibits in relation to topotypical turneri and 
other members of the group, it is probably a separate species 
in itself. The Nieuweveld Mountains taxon is alluded to in 
the above publication, with respect to the underside, but in 
spite of this being of a quite well marked form it is not truly 
comparable with that of amartola, and there are also other 
obvious differences between these butterflies. There are, in 


SIX FURTHER NEW BUTTERFLIES FROM SOUTHER AFRICA 43 


fact, further representatives of this group, in the Western 
Cape, which are requiring investigation. 

The present insect is named, with pleasure, after Mr. C. 
W. Wykeham. 

Trimenia macmasteri mijiburghi subsp. nov. 

Although not altogether unknown previously, this strik- 
ing insect seems to have been found, more recently, in large 
numbers through the initiative of Mr. Rudi Mijurgh, of Pre- 
toria, in deliberately investigating an unusual looking portion 
of small, white, stone covered veld between Steinkopf and 
Vioolsdrift, in Little Namaqualand, on 19th October 1977. Mr. 
Ivan Bampton had encountered it a few years previously in 
the same general area, and Mr. Charles Barrett found speci- 
mens at or near Goodhouse in October, 1962. Early examples 
which are in the South African Museum were collected by 
R. M. Lightfoot in Great Bushmanland early in the century. 
This butterfly is so distinctive in certain features that there 
seems little doubt about its being specifically distinct from any 
of the earlier described species of its genus. It is, however, 
most closely related to, and could possibly prove to be a sub- 
species of Trimenia macmasteri, which was described by the 
present writer in Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var. 80 (4): Pl. V 89-92 
(1968); and it is compared with this butterfly in the descrip- 
tion which follows hereunder. A conservative approach as 
regards its status is adopted in the present paper, provisionally. 

The forewings are more pointedly elongated (at least in 
the male) and their distal margin is usually more evenly 
curved (very evenly so in the female), while the lower portion 
of the hindwings tends, in the male, to form a rather more 
acute angle than in 7. m. macmasteri. 

Male Upperside 

Forewing. Tawny-orange more extensive in costal region 
owing to absence of dark scaling in at least a very large portion 
and sometimes most of area adjoining costa; and the orange 
portion of the wing more red in tone that in m. macmasteri. 
Dark scaling below vein | either extending relatively densely 
to the expansion of black border at anal-angle (as in the 
holotype), or with a pronounced intervening break of the orange 
ground-colour. Apical portion of distal border may be widened 
basad and terminate more or less acutely near yellow spot 
below costa (but with some orange marking retained within 
this apical area, and even if very fragmentary), as in the holo- 
type: or the border may only have some widening near the 
apex, and with a well-defined inner edge running downwards 
from the costa itself. 

Hindwing 

Much as in m. macmasteri, but the ground-colour of the 
same richer tone as that of forewing of present insect, and 
with less tendency to darkening of the veins which run through 
this area, than in the other taxon. 

Underside 

Allowing for individual variation in specimens, all wings 
differing little in basic detail from m. macmasteri. The exten- 


44 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


sive orange colouring in the forewing deeper and the hindwing 
with the less dark portions of the background of brighter 
colouring, generally (sometimes even of a salmon tone — 
though more fawn coloured in the holotype), and usually con- 
trasting more noticeably with the remaining dark portions, in 
comparison with m. macmasteri. The larger light markings 
tend, in most specimens, to show greater expansion than in 
the latter taxon. 

Length of forewing: 13.25-17.0 mm (15.25 mm in holo- 
type). 

Female (Upperside) 

More lightly marked, as a rule, than m. macmasteri. 

Forewing. Almost clear ochreous-orange up to dark distal 
border, which, unlike that of m. macmasteri (or which is 
generally so, in its own case), is inwardly evenly curved with- 
out any extension basad near apex, and (in the allotype) with 
only slight diffuse scaling inwardly near anal-angle — or, in 
more darkly marked specimens, with a definite, small dark 
patch here, and, in which specimens, there is also some dark 
scaling beyond middle of wing, below costa. 

Hindwing. No solid dark area extending basad of distal 
border but only diffuse scaling in upper portion of wing 
adjoining upper angle and costa, in the allotype — although a 
solid dark patch here, in more darkly marked specimens. 

Underside 

Basic marking much as in m. macmasteri, but most of 
background either lighter or of a brighter, more or less salmon 
tone. There is some general reduction in the size of the light 
marking, in the females of both taxa, though not always very 
noticeable and probably less so in the present insect. 

Length of forewing: 18.5-19.5 mm (the former measure- 
ment, that of allotype). 

3s Holotype, WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE: Blesber- 
gmyn, between Steinkopf and Vioolsdrift, 20.x.1977 (R. J. 
Mijburgh); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18690 . 

2 Allotype, W. CAPE PROVINCE: data as for holotype 
(R.J.M.); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18691. 

Paratype in Coll. British Museum (Nat. Hist.): as holo- 
type, 19.x.1977, one 6’ (R.J.M_.). 

Paratypes in author’s collection: as holotype, 19.x.1977, 
two oo (R.J.M.). Goodhouse, x.1962, one o (Charles 
Barrett). 

Paratypes in Coll. R. J. Mijburgh: as holotype, 20.x.1977, 
twelve oo’, one 2 (R.J.M.). 

Paratypes in Coll. W. H. Henning: Steinkopf, W. Cape, 
22.x.74, one o (I. Bampton); 22.x.74, one ot, one 2 (M. 
Smith); 4.xii.1974, one ¢@ (I.B.). 

Paratypes in Coll. Transvaal Museum: data as holotype, 
three od, one 9 (R.J.M_.). 

The opportunity has been taken to name this interesting 
and attractive member of its group after the writer’s friend, 
Mr. R. J. Mijburgh, whose unbounded enthusiasm in the 
butterfly field has led to most interesting captures. 


45 
Neocnemodon brevidens (Egger, 1865) Diptera: 
Syrphidae) New to Britain 
By ALAN STUBBS * 

Examination has recently been made of the Parmenter 
Collection at the British Museum (Natural History), prior to 
it being incorporated within the main British Collection. 
Among a short series standing under Cnemodon vitripennis 
(Meigen) there was a specimen of Neocnemodon brevidens, a 
species which has not previously been recognised in our 
fauna. 

The specimen, a male, has been identified using the key to 
north-west European species by Speight and Smith (1975), this 
work being based upon a revision by Deluchi and Pschorn- 
Walcher (1955). They established that our fauna comprised 
four species. The key (to males only) also includes two further 
European species which could be found in Britain, a very 
useful act of foresight. 

The fly readily keys to brevidens (Egger, 1865). It lacks 
keels or protuberances on the sternites, the front basitarsi 
bear a flap and the face is white haired. Unfortunately the 
genitalia are missing, but there seems no room for doubt over 
the placing of the specimen. The flap on the front basitarsus is 
easily seen as a dark projection mid way along the posterior 
surface, the whole of the ventral surface being shallowly 
excavated (in fact almost flat). The mid basitarsus is deeply 
excavated and bears a dark flap near the tip on the posterior 
surface (Smith and Speight simply refer to a notch behind, but 
material was not available to them). The mid tibia is inflated 
to form an elongate tubercule on the anterio-ventral face, this 
tubercule bearing dense minute black bristles. Speight and 
Smith discuss the nature of micans, which may be a separate 
closely related species with violet colouration and black tibial 
hairs; however, the British specimen does not fit this descrip- 
tion and is thus considered to be brevidens. 

Parmenter’s specimen bears the number 29518 which 
relates to an entry in his notebooks ‘Mitcham — Willow Lane, 
Surrey, 24 April 49, visiting Marsh Marigold’. The notebook 
indentification was given as Cnemodon vitripennis. Willow 
Lane runs from Mitcham Common down to the River Wandle, 
traversing a built up area in between. Parmenter visited Mit- 
cham Common on a number of occasions with very good 
results but it would be pure speculation to say where Marigold, 
Caltha palustris L., might have been growing in 1949. How- 
ever, the fact that Willow Lane is mentioned, rather than the 
Common, does suggest that the banks of the River Wandle 
may have been the source of the eight species of flies with a 
similar entry in his notebook. 

Neocnemodon are very elusive in the field, though easily 
overlooked as small ‘difficult’ black hoverflies. The very slender 
build of the male is a good initial clue to identification, con- 


epauire Conservancy Council, 19-20 Belgrave Square, London SW1X 


46 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


firmation being relatively easy since the downward projecting 
spurs on the hind trochanters are easily seen with a hand lens. 
The males are most easily found on flowers. The females are 
currently not identifiable with certainty since pairs in cop are 
required as a basis for a revisionary study. The short rounded 
antennae with a patch of orange beneath the third antennal 
segment distinguishes this genus from other Pipizini. The 
females are sometimes found flying low among grasses, being 
difficult to see and recognise as hoverflies. The peak period for 
Neocnemodon is the second half of May. It is, therefore, 
interesting to note the very early date of Parmenter’s brevidens 
since few dipterists are actively looking for hoverflies in late 
April, let alone looking for Neocnemodon. It is thus possible 
that more specimens will be recorded once hoverfly specialists 
fully wake up to the fact that the whole of April is an essential 
period for collecting a number of very early species. 

Deluchi and Pschorn cite records for brevidens from 
Holland, Belgium and Italy. Speight and Smith give the distri- 
bution as central and southern Europe. 


References 

Deluchi, V. and Pschorn-Walcher, H. Z., 1955. Les espéces genre 
Cnemodon Egg. (Dipt. Syrphidae) prédatrices de Dreyfusia (Adelges) 
piceae Ratzeburg (Hemiptera, Adelgidae), 1, Révision systématique 
et répartition geographique des espéces du genre Cnemodon Egg., 
Zeit. angew. Ent., 37: 492-506. 

Speight, M. C. D. and Smith, K. G. V., 1975. A key to males of the 
British species of Neocnemodon Goffe (Dipt. Syrphidae). Entomo- 
logist’s Rec. & J. Var., 87: 150-153. 


METRIOPTERA ROESELIT (HAGENBACH) f. DILUTA (CHARPEN- 
TIER) (ORTHOPTERA: TETTIGONIIDAE), A RECORD FOR KENT. — 
On 12th August 1979, I took a female specimen of this rare, 
macropterous form of M. roeselii, at Seasalter near Whit- 
stable. I found it on tall grass in a disused field on flat, alluvial 
land. It is easily distinguishable from the normal form, having 
forewings which extend beyond the hind knees, whereas in 
the normal form the forewings are short and leave part of the 
abdomen exposed when viewed from above. 

This is apparently the first discovery of f. diluta in Kent, 
no Kentish specimen existing at Maidstone Museum or (pre- 
viously) at the BMNH (my thanks to Mr. Eric Philp and Dr. 
D. R. Ragge for this information). My specimen is now at 
BMNH. — R. H. Cummina, 9 Essex Street, Whitstable, Kent. 


LATE DATE FOR EUMICHTIS LICHENEA (HUEBNER). — On 
the morning of 30th November 1979, hopefully searching the 
egg cartons inside the M.V. trap, 24 hours after the deposit of 
brown dust, said to be have been brought in from the Sahara 
by the prevailing Southerly air stream, I was surprised to find 
a male Eumichtis lichenea in good condition. The species is 
fairly common at M.V. in the district, every year in September; 
this specimen no doubt being a delayed emergence, prompted 
by the recent mild spell. — J. Briccs, 5 Deepdale Close, 
Slackhead, Beetham, near Milnthorpe, Cumbria. 


1a Sl = 2 


PLATE V 


g. 1. Pachynematus sulcatus Benson, @. 
(EIA IP, 2B willeaiis, Q 


47 
The Female of Pachynematus sulcatus Benson 
(Hym.: Tenthredinidae) 


By ANDREw D. LISTON * 


Pachynematus sulcatus was described by Benson (1948) 
from a single male specimen caught near Killin, Perthshire. 
The male has since been found in Sutherland, at Inchna- 
damph; Inverness, at Loch Garten, and in England, from 
Westmorland, at Moor House (Benson, 1967). P. sulcatus has 
not yet been recorded outside of Britain. Hellén (1974) notes 
that the Finnish specimens recorded by Lindqvist (1949) are 
actually referable to clitellatus (Lepeletier). 

Benson (1967) altered his 1958 key to include three pre- 
viously unknown females which he had associated with their 
males. The three species which he discussed were P. laevigatus 
Zaddach (= chambersi Benson), P. smithae Ross (= smithiae, 
auctt. err.) and P. sulcatus. His paper would appear to resolve 
the identities of chambersi and smithae very well, but for 
reasons which I shall now discuss, he seems to have been 
mistaken with regard to sulcatus. 

A single male sulcatus (Plate V, fig. 1) was caught by the 
author at the head of Loch Torridon, Wester Ross, on the 
17th of May 1978. Its superior size (7.5 mm) and unmistakably 
formed projection to the 8th abdominal tergite made it 
instantly recognisable. Its identity was subsequently confirmed 
by Mr. J. Quinlan, of the British Museum (Natural History) 
and it is now in the collection of Helsingfors University, Fin- 
land. 

I do not entirely agree with the position given to sulcatus 
in Benson’s (1958) key. In my specimen the head is only very 
slightly expanded behind the eyes (this is known to vary in 
certain other species). The body is almost entirely black except 
for the labrum, clypeus, tegulae, edge of pronotum, tibiae, 
apices of femora and the apex of the abdomen. The meso- 
pleura are smooth and shining. The hind tibia is about one 
and a quarter times as long as the hind femur (without its 
second trochanter). The inner hind tibial spur is little longer 
than the apical width of the hind tibia. Or, in short, sulcatus 
would appear to have some affinities with the clibrichellus- 
apicalis groups of Pachynematus (their colouration, and the 
comparitive lengths of tibia and femur are similar). 

When, on the following day at Torridon, I found two 
female Pachynematus specimens (Plate V), fig. 2) near the 
same spot where the male had been caught, I paid particular 
attention to them because I was not aware of the existence of 
Benson’s (1967) paper at that time. These specimens are 
superficially very similar to apicalis (Hartig) but differ from 
that species in having an antenna only as long as the length 
of the costa of the forewing, in having the inner tibial spur on 
the hind leg little longer than the apical width of the tibia, but, 
most importantly, the mesopleura are smooth. 


*99 Clermiston Road, Edinburgh, EH12 6UU. 


48 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


Benson (1967) based his interpretation of the female sul- 
catus on two insects ‘‘associated’’ with the male which he 
caught at Inchnadamph. These insects are distinguished from 
females of clitellatus in Benson’s revised key by the length of 
the saw, which is longer than the hind femur with the second 
trochanter in the specimens which Benson took for sulcatus, 
and shorter than this in clitellatus. From an examination of 
my own small series of clitellatus females, and judging from 
the comments of other authors, I do not think that the length 
of the saw can be used as a reliable character for the separa- 
tion of species related to clitellatus. Weiffenbach (1962) found 
that the number of teeth on the saws of clitellatus females 
varies between 10-18, and such variation affects the length of 
the saw significantly. 

A further objection to the association of these female saw- 
flies with sulcatus is in their markedly different colour pattern. 
P. clitellatus and the females that Benson attributed to sulcatus 
are extensively marked with yellowish brown on head, thorax 
and the underside of the abdomen, whilst the male of sulcatus 
is almost entirely black (as already described). I feel certain 
that Benson underestimated the degree of variation to be found 
in Pachynematus clitellatus and therefore attached too much 
importance to the differences he found in the specimens caught 
with the sulcatus male. 

The female Pachynematus specimens which I found at 
Torridon seem to me to be far more acceptable as the females 
of sulcatus. Plate V clearly shows their similarity. Except for 
the normal sex-controlled characters such as antennal length, 
it is, in fact, very hard to find differences between them. Even 
the pale areas of venation correspond exactly. The femur is 
very pale in the female specimen figured, but in the second 
specimen caught with it the femur is as dark as in the male. 
This, like the form of the head, varies intraspecifically in 
several Pachynematus species. The female specimens are 
6.75 and 7 mm long. 

The female insects from Torridon which I believe to be 
sulcatus may be distinguished from most species, except for 
extensicornis Norton and kirbyi Dahlbom, by the shape of 
the mesoscutellum, without its post tergite, which is more than 
one and one third times as broad as long (see fig. 1 in Benson, 
1967). They differ from apicalis and moerens (Forster) in having 
an antenna as long as the costa of the forewing, the hind tarsus 
two thirds as long as the hind tibia, the inner hind tibial spur 
little longer than the apical breadth of the hind tibia, and 
smooth mesopleura. They differ from clitellatus and xantho- 
carpus (Hartig) in having a sawsheath that is triangular and 
acute at the apex (as in apicalis) when viewed dorsally, a 
tuberculate head, darker colour, and a narrower head behind 
the eves. 

The association of the Pachynematus specimens proposed 
here is only tentative and must await corroboration (it is 
conceivable, though not likely, that the female specimens 


THE FEMALE OF PACHYNEMATUS SULCATUS BENSON 49 
represent an undescribed species). I do believe, however, that 
it offers a much better solution to the problem than Benson’s 
(1967) paper. 

The large number of recent additions and alterations 
made by Benson to the British list of Pachynematus are scat- 
tered in several separate papers. The necessity of consulting 
these renders Benson’s (1958) key very difficult to use. Hellen’s 
(1974) key contains fuller descriptions of many British species 
and it is very useful for clarifying some of the more difficult 
parts of Benson’s key. Worthy of note is Hellen’s synonymy 
of Pachnematus glabriceps Lindqvist, 1949 (introduced to the 
British list by Benson, 1964) under P. parvilabris (Thomson, 
1871). 

Acknowledgements 

I thank Mr. J. Quinlan for confirming my identification 
of the male sulcatus. Mr. T. E. Gray very kindly allowed me 
to use his photographic equipment. 

References 


Benson, R. B., 1948. British Sawflies of the genus Pachynematus Konow 
(Hymenoptera, Tenthredinidae). Entomologist’s mon. Mag., 84: 58- 
65 


Benson, R. B., 1958. Hymenoptera Symphyta, section c. Handbk. Ident. 
Br. Insects., 6 (2): 139-252. 

Benson, R. B., 1964. Pachynematus glabriceps Lindqvist, a new British 
sawfly and a note on Empria liturata Gmelin (Hym., Tenthredi- 
nidae). Entomologists’s mon. Mag., 100: 263-264. 

Benson, R. B., 1967. Pachynematus laevigatus Zaddach as a British 
sawfly and the females of P. chambersi Benson, P. smithiae Ross 
and P. sulcatus Benson (Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae). Entomo- 
logist’s mon. Mag., 103: 141-143. 

Hellen, W., 1974. Die Nematinen Finnlands III (Hymenoptera, Ten- 
thredinidae), Gattung Pachynematus Konow. Notul. Ent., 54: 
65-80. 

Lindqvist, E., 1949. Neue nordische Blattwespen. Notul. Ent., 28: 


-86. 
Weiffenbach, H., 1962. Tenthredinidenstudien, If (Hymn.). Mitt. Muin- 
chner Entomol. Ges., 52: 123-145. 
Legend for plate. 
Fig. 1. Pachynematus sulcatus Benson, @. 
Fig. 2. P. ? sulcatus, Q. 


SURGICAL SPIRIT AS A RELAXING AGENT. — Having had 
problems with mould in relaxing tins, I tried using water mixed 
with a small amount of surgical spirit in my relaxing tin. This 
proved to be most effective; as well as preventing mould, this 
mixture has the advantage of relaxing very quickly, 24 hours 
being sufficient for all but the largest insects. I have even 
used this relaxant on dried and crumpled leaves prior to press- 
ing them, again with great success. — P. J. JOHNSON, 7 Haver- 
hill Road, Horseheath, Cambridge, CB] 6QR. 23.xii.1979. 


ORTHOSIA STABILIS D. & S. IN DECEMBER. — As the 
weather had been quite mild, I decided to put the light trap 
out in the garden on 25th December 1979, just to see what was 
around. By the following morning five Erannis defoliaria 
Clerck and, much to my surprise, a single male Orthosia 
stabilis had turned up. This, I believe, is not the first time an 
Orthosia species has occured at this time of year though I have 
never seen a documented case of this before. — M. PARSONS, 
The Forge, Russells Green, Ninfield, Battle, East Sussex. 


50 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


Notes and Observations 


PARAMESIA GNOMANA (CLERCK) (LEP.. TORTRICIDAE) IN 
SussEX IN 1979. — In 1977 I found five specimens of this 
species at Broadoak, near Heathfield, in Sussex (cf. Ent. Rec., 
89: 274). This seems to be its only known British locality. I 
was unable to search for the moth in 1978 and not until the 
15th August 1979. At 10 p.m. on the 18th August a single 
worn specimen came to an M.V. bulb and sheet in the same 
place as the 1977 specimens. This confirms the species to be 
of regular occurrence in this part of East Sussex. — H. C. J. 
Goprray, Imperial College, Silwood Park, Ascot, Berkshire. 


LASIOPOGON CINCTUS (FAB.) (DipT.: ASILIDAE) IN SOUTH 
Cumsria. — On 30th June 1976 I was collecting diptera on 
Yewbarrow, near Witherslack (Cumbria, V.C. 69) and had the 
luck to take a female Lasiopogon cinctus (Fab.). This species 
appears not to have been reported so far north before. P. 
Skidmore in his paper “‘Asilidae (Dipt.) of Northern England” 
(Ent. Rec. J. Var., 78: 259) does not record the species as 
occurring further north than the sand dunes of South Lan- 
cashire on the west side of the Pennines. My specimen was 
taken at circa 400 feet (124 metres) on a carboniferous lime- 
stone hill. The late Harold Oldroyd (1969, Handbk. Ident. Br. 
Insects, IX pt. 4: 85) states that Lasiopogon inhabits sandy 
heaths and open woodland. — Dr. NeviILL_eE L. BIRKETT, 
Kendal Wood, New Hutton, Cumbra, LA8 0AQ. 


A FEw FURTHER REMARKS ON EMUS HIRTUS L. (COL.: 
STAPHYLINIDAE). — Mr. J. A. Parry’s very interesting record 
of this insect at Canterbury (anrea: 102) is particularly notable 
in being the first, as far as I know, from carrion in Britain; 
on the Continent it occurs at carrion (and even, occasionally, 
rotting fungi) as well as dung, but far more seldom. The 
species, always rare, appears to have become more so than 
ever during the past decade or two in its north Kent head- 
quarters, for Mr. Eric Philp has kindly consulted his files kept 
at Maidstone Museum and informs me that he has no record 
since those I published in my 1964 note (see below). I do not, 
however, think we need conclude that it has gone for good, 
seeing that it has been known from one or another part of the 
area over such a long period, even though not continuously: 
so that, as long as a large extent of suitable terrain exists 
there, its total extinction seems unlikely. 

_ In view of the extreme paucity of Essex records of E. 
hirtus, it is worth mentioning an old one for Southend 
(Haward, 1859) omitted by Fowler; a modern capture in the 
same district (D. Down, 1947) was reported by Huggins (1962, 
Ent. Rec., 74. 279). I can also enlarge a little on the Sitting- 
bourne (Kent) record of 1896 by Carr, given by Fowler & 
Donisthorpe (p. 232): Walker (Rochester List) tells us that 
the actual place was Gore Court Park — later a locality for 
another rare dung-beetle, Copris lunaris L. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 51 


For some account of Emus in Britain see Brown, S. C. S., 
1963, Ent. Rec., 75: 87-88 (early history); Allen, A. A. 1962, 
ibid., 74: 219-221 and 1964, 76: 145-146 (later history, etc.). 
— A. A. ALLEN. 


NotaABLE MOTH SPECIES AT ASHURST, HAMPSHIRE IN 1979. 
— A 125-watt Robinson M.V. light trap was operated almost 
nightly in my garden at Ashurst, Hampshire (map ref.: SU 
344115) from 12th July 1976 until my departure to Scotland 
on 18th September 1979 to take up new employment. The 
following species of Macrolepidoptera were recorded in 1979 
but not in the previous years. Numbers of individuals are 
given in brackets:— Cyclophora pendularia (Clerck) (1), 
Pelurga comitata (L.) (1), Plemyria rubiginata (D. & S.) (4), 
Horisme tersata (D. & S.) (1), Philereme transversata (Hufn.) 
(1), Chloroclystis debiliata (Hubn.) (1), Plagodis pulveraria (L.) 
(1), Nola confusalis (H.-S.) (1), Agrotis vestigialis (Hufn.) (1), 
Orthosia populeti (Fab) (2), Moma alpium (Osb.) (1), Apamea 
sublustris (Esp.) (2), A. characterea (Hubn.) (2), A. anceps 
(D. & S.) (1), Nonagria typhae (Thunb.) (1), Archanara spar- 
ganii (Esp.) (1), Elaphria venustula (Hubn.) (1), Hypena cras- 
salis (Fab.) (1). 

The following were among the less common _ species 
recorded in 1979, having also been recorded in one or more 
of the previous years: — Trichiura crataegi (L.) (3), Tethea 
ocularis (L.) (10), Jdaea sylvestraria (Hubn.) (1), J. emarginata 
(L.) (1), I. straminata (Borkh.) (8), Horisme vitalbata (D. & 
S.) (1), Euphyia unangulata (Haw.) (2), Eupithecia tenuiata 
(Hubn.) (10), &. intricata (Zett.) (17), E. succenturiata (L.) 
(1), E. simpliciata (Haw.) (1), E. indigata (Hubn.) (1), E. 
dodoneata (Guen.) (22), Lobophora halterata (Hufn.) (1), 
Acasis viretata (Hubn.) (3), Apocheima hispidaria (D. & S.) 
(31), Cleora cinctaria (D. & S.) (5), Boarmia roboraria (D. & 
S.) (3), Lomographa bimaculata (Fab.) (6), Odontosia car- 
melita (Esp.) (1), Dasychira fascelina (L.) (4), Leucoma salicis 
(L.) (1), Eilema sororcula (Hufn.) (2), Diacrisia sannio (L.) 
(1), Graphiphora augur (Fab.) (2), Mythimna pudorina (D. & 
S.) (3), Aporophyla lutulenta (D. & S.) (1), Lithophane semi- 
brunnea (Haw.) (3), L. socia (Hufn.) (1), L. ornitopus (Hufn.) 
(10), Conistra rubiginea (D. & S.) (3), Mormo maura (L.) (2), 
Dipterygia scabriuscula (L.) (33), Ipimorpha subtusa (D. & S.) 
(2), Enargia ypsillon (D. & S.) (12), Cosmia pyralina (D. & S.) 
(14), Apamea unanimis (Hubn.) (1), A. scolopacina (Esp.) 
(2), Eremobia ochroleuca (D. & S.) (2), Nycteola revayana 
(Scop.) (1), Catocala promissa (D. & S.) (4), Lygephila pastinum 
(Treits.) (1), Parascotia fuliginaria (L.) (4). 

I am very grateful to Col. D. H. Sterling and his sons, 
Mark and Philip, for identifying some of the Pugs and for 
confirming the identities of all the other species mentoned. 
For my previous records from this site, see Ent. Rec., 89 (1977) 
188, 90 (1978) 140 and 210, and 91 (1979) 135. — Dr. J.C. A. 
Craik, Dunstaffnage Marine Research Laboratory, P.O. Box 
No. 3, Oban, Argyll. 


52 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 

PyRRHIDIUM SANGUINEUM L. AND CRIOCEPHALUS RUSTICUS 
L. (CoxL.: LONGICORNIA) IN MONMOUTHSHIRE. — During 1979 
these two rare Longicorn Beetles were noted in Monmouth- 
shire and, as far as I am able to ascertain, neither species had 
previously been recorded from the county. 

On June 26th whilst searching for beetles in a wood in 
the east of the county I found a single specimen of Pyrrhidium 
sanguineum L. sitting on the herbage at the side of a ride. Joy 
(1932, Pract. Hanb. Brit. Beetles, I: 381) describes its occur- 
rence as “very rare” and gives the distribution as “‘Britain”’. 
On the other hand Fowler (1890, Col. Brit. Isl., 4: 224), under 
its name of Callidium sanguineum L. cites early records from 
London, North Wales, Exeter, and Plaistow and also gives its 
occurrence as “‘very rare’. Apparently this species is currently 
found very locally in the neighbouring county of Hereford- 
shire. 

It is interesting to note that this wood produced several 
other species of Longicorns including Rhagium mordax De G., 
Stenochorus meridianus Pz., Pachytodes cerambyciformis 
Schr., Leptura maculata Poda, L. quadrifasciata L., L. mela- 
nura L., and Clytus arietis L. Also among many other interest- 
ing beetles found in this same wood were Platystomus albinus 
L., Elater cinnabarinus Esch., Pyrochroa coccinea L., P. 
serraticornis Scop., Melandrya caraboides L., and Trichius 
fasciatus L. 

On the night of 27th July a specimen of Criocephalus 
rusticus L. entered my m.v. moth trap in my garden at Usk. 
This rare Longicorn is apparently associated with pines and is 
of mainly Scottish distribution. However, according to Fowler 
and Donisthorpe (1913, Col. Brit. Isl., 6: 152) it is sometimes 
imported in timber and they refer to a Welsh record of one 
being found in a coal-mine, it being assumed that it was 
introduced in pit-props. It should be noted that there are no 
coal-mines in this area and although there is a saw-mills in the 
vicinity it deals only with locally-grown timber. — Dr. G. A. 
Neit Horton, Plas Newydd, Usk, Gwent. 


THE EaRLy THORN: SELENIA BILUNARIA ESP. AND PAr- 
THENOGENESIS. — On 12th May 1979 I took a worn female 
Early Thorn at m.v. light which obligingly produced a large 
batch of eggs. Not being a particularly difficult species to rear, 
a great proportion of larvae pupated on 4th June. Approxi- 
mately half the number were housed in my puparium, the 
remaining fifty per cent being placed in separate cages, isolated 
from contact with any amorous lepidopteron that may have 
cared to quiver its antennae in their general direction. All 
imagines emerged successfully between the 23rd and 27th July, 
the specimens in the puparium pairing readily. 

I was, therefore, not in the least surprised when, several 
days later, eggs began to appear on the netting and glass sides. 
Curiously, ova also carpeted the cage of a lone virgin female 
moth. I had no reason to dispute her chastity and immediately 
discarded the absurd notion that her mate could have been so 
cunning and deceitful as to have left no trace of his visit, 
carefully replacing the lid on his departure as he had found it. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 53 
I studied the ova for depressions and irregularities synonymous 
with infertility. Far from there being signs of weakness in the 
chorion it was not long before small, dark, twig-like larvae 
began to strut about the cage, some of the more restful indivi- 
duals hanging impassively from the roof on strands of silken 
thread. 

Unfortunately they survived for only four days despite 
constant attention. Not only did I question my ability as a 
lepidopterist, my sanity or at best my sobriety was under 
suspicion. There could be no mistake. From cot to deathbed 
this phenomenal female had been starved of contact with a 
member of the opposite sex. 

One face-saving answer graciously presented itself to me 
and I gratefully accepted. This word, parthenogenesis, which 
I find exceedingly difficult to pronounce let alone comprehend, 
I simply choose to define as the development of an ovum 
without fertilization into a new individual. Whilst this may be 
perfectly acceptable in the eyes of an uncivilized aphid in a 
world where males may be absent, the higher and further 
developed elite of the insecta do rather tend to look down with 
compound eye upon this method of reproduction and as such 
is in my experience uncommonly encountered within the 
lepidoptera. I understand (please do not hesitate to correct me 
if I am wrong) that ova which develop in this way are usually 
diploid, in which case all offspring will be genetically identical 
with the parent. In this present age of mass produced stereo- 
types whatever happened to meiosis? — M. J. SyMEs, 2 
Montrouge Crescent, Epsom, Surrey, KT17 3NY. 

LuMINOUS CENTIPEDES. — On the evening of Sth Novem- 
ber 1979 I had a garden bonfire, more for the purpose of 
rubbish disposal than for celebration of the date. While fork- 
ing up large prunings from a Lawson’s cypress hedge I noticed 
a number of strongly luminous streaks beneath the wet prun- 
ings, and closer inspection showed them to be moving. Having 
obtained an electric torch it was found that the luminosity 
was coming from centipedes each of which was glowing along 
its entire length. — T. D. FEARNEHOUGH, 80 Wainsford Road, 
Everton, Lymington, Hampshire. 

PARASCOTIA FULIGINARIA L.: WAVED BLACK IN SHROP- 
SHIRE. — On the night of 8/9th August 1979, I operated my 
M.V. light at Whixall Moss. Among the 30-40 species which 
came to the light was a blackish geometrid-looking type of 
moth which I did not recognise. Further examination in daylight 
revealed it to be Parascotia fuliginaria, and my friend Mr. J. 
Briggs, of Beetham, confirmed this. This moth was exhibited at 
the Lancashire and Cheshire Entomological Society Exhibition 
on 3rd November. Is this the furthest north in this country 
that this species has been recorded? — J. G. WHuITESIDE, 
Dover Farm, Hoghton, near Preston, PRS OSJ. 

LITHOPHANE ORNITOPUS HUFNAGEL: GREY SHOULDER-KNOT 
IN Nortu Bucks. — The record of this moth being taken at 
Woking by C. G. M. de Worms prompts me to report the 
capture of one at Willen on 1.iv.1978. I have collected in this 


54 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


area for many years and have run a M.V. lamp at Willen on 
most suitable nights since 1967 but this is the first specimen 
of this species to be taken. The late Sir Eric Ansorge in his 
The Macrolepidoptera of Buckinghamshire states that “‘the 
insect is evidently very scarce in the County”. — G. E. HicGs, 
The Cottage, Willen, Milton Keynes. 


A Dwarr ACcRONICTA RUMICUS L.: KNOoTGRASS. — An 
unusually small A. rumicis was among a number of examples 
of this moth of normal size which came to light near Beacons- 
field on 13th August 1979. The mounted specimen measures 
25 mm (approximately | in.) wing-tip to wing-tip with a body 
length of 12 mm (approximately 1 in.). Although slightly 
worn, all the typical markings are present in miniature, includ- 
ing the distinctive white spots near the hind margin of the 
forewings. Hydracecia micacea Esp. springs to mind as perhaps 
the most frequent of several species in which I have met 
extreme variations in size, but this is the first time I have 
encountered such deviation in the genus Acronicta. — P. Q. 
WINTER, West End Farm, Mustin, Filey, North Yorkshire. 


Practical Hints — April 


Searching hedgerows by day, preferably in warm sunshine, 
will yield young larvae of several different species freshly out 
of hibernation. The garden tiger Arctia caja larvae rest on 
small nettle or deadnettle plants — full grown larvae of the 
cream spot tiger Arctia villica L. may be found at the same 
time. Drinker Philudoria potatoria L. larvae may be found on 
grass whilst larvae of the oak eggar Lasiocampa quercus L. 
lie sunning themselves on low stems of bramble or blackthorn. 
The camouflaged larvae of the lappet Gastropacha quercifolia 
L. may also be found on this latter plant, usually on stems as 
thick as a finger. All these larvae are more easy to find in 
mid-April than at other times because at this time the hedges 
are still largely devoid of leaves (WATKINSON). 

In most years, the sallows are over before Orthosia popu- 
leti F. (Lead-coloured Drab) and especially O. gracilis D. & S. 
(Powdered Quaker) are on the wing. In a late year, like 1979, 
however, sallows flowering in early April near aspens may 
produce an abundance of the former insect, and I once took 
numbers of the red form of O. gracilis at late-flowering sallows 
on one of the New Forest bogs (GoaTER). 

Collecting catkins can produce larvae of several species 
of sallow moth. Freshly fallen catkins of black poplar collected 
in mid-April may contain small larvae of a local moth, the 
pale lemon sallow Xanthia ocellaris Bork. Sallow catkins 
picked at or just after the time of peak flowering will almost 
always be found to contain larvae of the pink-barred sallow X. 
togata Esp. and especially the sallow X. icteritia Hufn., often 
in extremely large numbers. I once separated 155 larvae from 
a bag full of about 250 catkins collected along a roadside in 
Scotland. The technique I found the most productive was to 
allow catkins 2-3 days to partially dry in a large paper bag, 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 35 
shaken every day. After this time, ‘the catkins are riddled daily 
in a 4 inch-mesh garden sieve, the young larvae readily falling 
through. Several species of geometers and micros as well as 
other noctuids may also be collected at the same time 
(WATKINSON). 

Imagines of Cleora cinctaria D. & S. may be found on the 
Scottish moors sitting on posts, trunks and especially on rocks. 
Larvae of Xestia alpicola alpina H. & W. may be found in 
late April at Aviemore and elsewhere, lying under lichens 
among bearberry and crowberry above 2,000 feet; and in odd 
years larvae of Psodos coracina Esp. may be found with them 
(RICHARDSON). 

I have found many more specimens of the Sloe Carpet 
(Aleucis distinctata H.-S.) on blackthorns growing a foot or 
so high amongst heather than on the larger bushes in the 
thickets on the New Forest heaths. Use the appearance of the 
flowers as a guide to when the moth will be out (GOATER). 

Being anxious to get my brood of Catocala fraxini through 
before the end of July owing to a proposed trip to Shetland, I 
started the larvae successfully on balsam poplar, which came 
earliest into leaf (RICHARDSON). 

Patrol ash trees which are in flower at early dusk with a 
paraffin lantern and you will find larvae of the Centre-barred 
Sallow (Atethmia centrago Haw.) racing up the trunks. You, 
too, must trot your round, or you will miss them! (GOATER). 

In early April, thick clumps of dead grass in hedgerows 
may if parted reveal cocoons of the ruby tiger Phragmatobia 
fulginosa L., usually several inches above soil (WATKINSON). 

Lichens growing on rocks along the South and West 
coast should be searched for small pieces raised above the level 
of the rest. These may be the daytime resting places for larvae 
of the marbled green Cryphia muralis Forster. Other larvae, 
particularly Scoparia spp., can be found at the same time 
under smaller pieces of lichen. All are easily reared if provided 
with lichen which is lightly damped from time to time 
(WATKINSON). 

Inspect the stems of Eupatorium cannabinum (hemp agri- 
mony). If you find small holes and sometimes slight swellings 
with holes you have probably found the dwelling of the plume 
moth Adaina microdactyla Hbn. Cut the stems near the 
ground, tie loosely together and stand in the garden, preferably 
with a little shelter against the worst of the weather. In early 
May put them in a muslin cage and keep an eye open for the 
moths that emerge. I have had 100% success using this method 
(BRADFORD). 

The fiddle-shaped cases containing the larvae of the 
exquisitely coloured longhorn Nemophora fasciella F. occur 
at Stanford-le-Hope, as well as on the opposite side of the 
Thames estuary in Kent. The larva feeds on the small dead 
leaves attached to the lower part of the stems of Ballota nigra 
(Black Horehound), but drop off at the slightest disturbance. 
Thus, it pays to examine carefully the soil around the base of 
the plant after first brushing aside the nettles and other vegeta- 
tion usually surrounding the foodplant (CHALMERS-HunT). 


56 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/11/80 


Current Literature 


The Formicidae (Hymenoptera) of Fennoscandia and Denmark 
by C. A. Collingwood. 174 pp., 267 figures. Boards. 
Fauna Entomologica Scandinavica, vol. 8. Scandinavian 
Science Press Ltd., Klampenborg, Denmark, 1979. 
The species included in this primarily taxonomic work 

are those recorded from the British Isles, Norway, Sweden, 

Finland and Denmark. The Channel Isles are also included 

although their fauna is rather out of place and some intro- 

duced species are dealt with. 

Ant taxonomy seems to change in cycles and at present 
we are in a splitting phase with a return to the species limits 
proposed by Nylander and Bondroit, among others, whose 
judgements were made with even less adequate material. 
Many of the Lasius species synonymised by Wilson, for 
example, are revived and this should at least result in realistic 
investigation of their possible biological differences when they 
are not obscured by recording under too few names. 

Collingwood brings us up to date both with new taxono- 
mic revision and with recent discoveries from this region such 
as Sifolinia and Myrmica hirsuta. The illustrations and keys 
are a great improvement on previous works, but some genera, 
of course, remain difficult to the non-specialist. Unfortunately 
the drawings of heads of Myrmica schencki and M. lobicornis 
are transposed which could be very confusing and there are 
several other points of difference between keys and illustra- 
tions which are less serious because correct interpretation is 
obvious. 

Notes on the biology of each species are included, but 
are very brief, and there is a reference list containing some 
representative biological papers as well as the most relevant 
taxonomic works. The keys would have been more helpful to 
beginners if relevant biological information had been included 
instead of only those features observable in dead museum 
specimens. For example the smells of many ants are more 
distinctive than their macroscopic appearance, but there is 
no attempt to describe them. Reference to the valuable review 
by Way (Annual Review of Entomology, 1963) would have 
been an adequate substitute for not dealing wth the associa- 
tion between ants and aphids mor thoroughly. 

__ These few adverse comments are minor in comparison 
with the general high quality of the book. We may well see 
a few more revisions of species where the status of described 
forms is stili in doubt — especially in Formica, Lasius and 
Leptothorax — but there can be no doubt that this is the 
standard work for indentification of ants of this region for 
many years to come and if it is superceded it will be because 
it has provided a clear basis for further work. — JoHN PONTIN. 


EXCHANGES AND WANTS 


Wanted — Records of Hamearis lucina (Duke of Burgundy) in Dorset, past 
or present. Also comments or observations on any aspect of its behaviour — 
for example, mate location, courtship, copulation and egglaying. — Mr. 
W. G. Shreeves, 5 Butts Mead, Shaftesbury, Dorset. The information is 
required for a study of this butterfly’s requirements on Naturalist’s Trust 
conservation areas. 


(dag Puan le he teliencetopets: saws nasi} eaeangett : bit dd 
Viedhin het ian ate woe <1 eal Pei ee va’ GR Aa 
J cal ailiee Via “neiletigg thi Querying Aiea 3 pe r my 
wir eel Rel ed eld habs ot i Oi nei , 
any) «Av Awe ' tl ieee a5 une wiht ek, ‘ 


TD ince nN Pa iZ2 a eT of 
oth ‘Lets ee 5 uh thet gu 4 
aw ipiion. al apes wn 
peuss Mw dlaghy ; 


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CONTENTS 


Sterrha vulpinaria H.-S. (rusticata sens. auct.) and a second natural 
larval foodplant. B. K. WEST ? 


Epichoristodes acerbella Walker (Lep.: Tortie: ‘et capture of 
the imago at large in Britain. A. A. ALLEN _... 


Further Reminiscences of a Butterfly Hunter. Rev. J. N. MARCON 


Six Further New Butterflies from Southern Africa. C. G. C. DICK- 
SON au 


Neocnemodon Fede (Egger, 1865) Diptera: Syrphidae) Nea to 
Britain. A. STUBBS 


The Female of Pachynematus sulcatus Benson ym. Tenthecdiee 
dae). A. D. LISTON . oe uae : atk aes ee 


Practical Hints — April 


Notes and Observations: 
Extreme Abundance of Ectoedemia subbimaculella axa in 
Berkshire (V.C. 22). P. J. JOHNSON . aM 


Unusual Foodplant for Saturnia apr L. larvae in Cusntaes 
J. BRIGGS 


Stigmella minusculella (H. S). Pp. Us JOHNSON a A: EMMET 


Metrioptera roeselii (Hagenbach) f. diluta (Charpentier) (Orthop- 
tera: Tettigoniidae), a Record for Kent. R. H. CUMMING 


Late Date for Eumichtis lichenea (Hbn.). J. BRIGGS ... 
Surgical Spirit as a Relaxing Agent. P. J. JOHNSON ... 
Orthosia stabilis D. & S. in December. M. PARSONS . 


Paramesia gnomana (Clerck) (Lep.: ey in Stee in 
1979) Hy C23. GODERAY..- 


Lasiopogon cinctus (Fab.) (Diptera: Asilidae in South Cadibag 
De Nek. BIRKE ibs 


A Few Further Remarks on Emus hits L. ol: _Staphlinidae) 
AS AS ALLEN | 3. 


Notable Moth Species at Ashe “Hampshire i in 1979. Dr. 1. 
GATOR ATEN 533 : 


Pyrrhidium sanguineum L. Bae Grocennais rusticus L. Col: 
Longicornia) in Monmouthshire. Dr. G. A. N. HORTON 


The Early Thorn: Selenia bilunaria Esp. and Fan ee ea 
M.S S¥MES 7 cu: d é a pee 


Luminous Centipedes. T. D. FEARNEHOUGH . 


Parascotia fuliginaria L.: Waved Black in Shropshire, ‘Ue G. 
WHITESIDE Hee 


Lithophane ornitopus Thirfiinieel: Grey Seeuldseeat in <Nont 
Bucks: GE HIGGS) =: 


A Dwarf Acronicta rumicis L: re east 'P. 0. “WINTER . 


Obituary: 


The Baron C. G. M. de Worms 
Current Literature ... 


The Butterflies and Moths of Went: vols 3. cy M. ‘CHALMERS. 


Printed by Charles Phipps Ltd., 225 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4HL 


31 


33 
34 


38 
45 


47 
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32 


37 
a7 


46 
46 
49 
49 


50 
50 
50 
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By 


32 
53 


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56 


(225) 


IL. 92,No. 3 March, 1980 ISSN 0013 8916 
595, 7059 
Ent, 
THE 


ENTOMOLOGIST’S 
RECORD 


AND JOURNAL OF VARIATION 


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| NEVILLE BIRKETT, M.A., M.B. C. A. COLLINGWOOD, B.SC., F.R.E.S. 
S. N. A. JACOBS, F.R.E.S. J. HEATH, F.R.E.S., F.L.S. 

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PEATE, Vi 


HETEROZYGOTE FORMS. 


EXTREME HOMOZYGOTE FORMS. - 


IN APICAL SPOTS. 


LESS EXTREME HOMOZYGOTE FEMALES 
WITH TW 


57 
Notes on Breeding the Marbled White Butterfly: 
Melanargia galathea L. ab. craskei Tubbs 


By RICHARD REVELS, F.R.E.S.' 


I am indebted to Mr. Robert Craske for giving Ralph 
Tubbs and myself the opportunity to breed this recently 
discovered aberration of the Marbled White butterfly (M. 
galathea), which has on the forewings the black markings 
around the central costal blotch extended outwards along the 
costa, joining the sub-apical bar, and extending distally to 
become confluent with the marginal markings. On the hind- 
wings the black central band is broader than in the typical 
galatea. The upper and undersides of both sexes are affected. 
Mr. Tubbs has now named this abberration crasket. 

Mr. Craske has observed this form annually in two 
restricted areas on the South Downs, since 1970. In the wild 
the ratio of aberrant forms to typical varies from | in 20 to 
fin 30: 

Mr. Craske kindly gave two living females of this aberra- 
tion to Ralph Tubbs in July 1974, which laid a total of 180 
eggs, 30 of which were sent on to me. I kept these eggs in a 
small plastic container until they began to hatch, whereon I 
put the small larvae and the remaining unhatched eggs onto 
potted grass, and netted them over. The pot stood in a bowl 
of water which acts as a moat to keep out predators, such as 
beetles and earwigs, as well as providing sustenance for the 
grass. The pot was placed in my garden, and left there even in 
the worst weather. 

The larvae of galathea remain very small until the spring, 
however they do feed a little in the milder spells during the 
winter, and at the end of December 1974, I examined a pot 
one evening, by torch light, and found a number of the larva 
crawling up the grass blades and feeding a little, they were 
about 3 mm long. When disturbed the larva falls to the ground, 
rolling into a compact ring. 

In the spring of 1975 I found 11 healthy looking larvae, 
which I moved to a fresh crop of grass in a new pot, but some 
weeks later whilst checking that all was well, I accidentally 
squashed one, however the remaining 10 all pupated safely. 
The fully grown larva, when ready to pupate, just lies on the 
soil surface, making no kind of cocoon. After about four 
days it changes to pupa, remaining in pupa state for about 
three weeks, and during the final two or three days the fore- 
wing patterns can be seen through the pupa case. 


‘Top Field Farm, Dunton Lane, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire SG18 8QU. 


Explanation of Plate 
The top four show the normal heterozygote form of ab. craskei (Tubbs) 
male and female upper and undersides. 
The middle four show the extreme homozygote forms, the two males 
on the left were bred 1979, the females on the right bred 1976. 
The bottom two females are considered to be less extreme homozygotes. 
They also have twin apical spots. Bred 1979. 

Photo by R. Revels. 


58 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


The F, generation began to hatch at the end of June 
1975, and consisted of one crippled type male, three male abs., 
four typical females and two female aberrations. I decided 
to try to get pairings between the abs., and I put the three 
male abs. with the first female ab. to hatch, and although no 
pairing was seen, she began to lay a few days later stock code 
75/A. The males were then put with the other female abs. 
Again no pairing was seen, but after four days she began to 
lay, stock code 75/B. I then took these rather old males and 
put them with one of the typical females, which after a few 
days laid about 20 eggs. Code 75/C. 

The eggs from stocks 75/B and 75/C all collapsed after 
a few days, however the eggs from the 75/A stock proved to 
be fertile, this female had done well, laying almost 200 eggs. 
I sent 50 of these back to Mr. Tubbs who had only managed to 
breed one specimen from his stock, an aberrant female, which 
he kept for his collection. 

I received back from Mr. Tubbs 30 eggs which had been 
laid by another wild female aberration given to him by Mr. 
Craske. Stock 75/D. 

I collect the rather large white eggs up each evening by 
touching them with a wetted artist’s paint brush, to which 
they adhere. The eggs were not attached to anything, being 
loose at the bottom of my laying cage. As before, I kept the 
eggs in a small plastic container until they began to hatch. 

I decided to split this years stock up into three lots of 
about 50, to each pot of grass. In October 1975 I examined 
the pots and found fair numbers in two, but in the other one 
I could only find one larva. No predator could be found, and it 
remains uncertain what happened to the larvae in this pot. I 
decided to put some of the larvae from the two pots into a 
wooden cake which I had planted with grass. The two pots 
and the cage were kept outdoors, exposed to all weather 
throughout the winter. On the first of January 1976 I measured 
several of the larvae, which were about 4 mm long, being 
slightly larger than at the same time the previous winter. 

No significant difference in the survival rate was found 
between those overwintered in the cage (which had given them 
some protection from the rain and frosts) and those left in the 
pots; neither being very successful. In mid April I moved the 
larvae to fresh grass in new pots, but I could only find 12 
larvae, 11 of which reached pupa. At the end of June 1976 
stock 75/A produced an F, generation of one typical male, 
three male abs., two typical females and five female aberra- 
tions. One of the males abs. and four of the female abs. were 
more extreme than had been seen before, either in the wild by 
Mr. Craske, or in the broods that had been bred. Mr. Tubbs 
also had some of these extreme forms in the brood that he 
reared from the eggs I had sent him. 

From the results so far it seems likely that ab. craskei is 
produced by a “dominant” gene, with the usual form which 
had been taken in the wild by Mr. Craske, and bred in the F, 


NOTES ON BREEDING MARBLED WHITE BUTTERFLY 59 


generations, being the heterozygote form; and the more 
extreme forms which hatched in the brood when an ab. male 
was paired with an ab. female, being the homozygote form. As 
some typical specimens hatched in this brood it rules out this 
form being a “‘simple recessive,” as a pure strain of oberra- 
tions would have been produced. 

From the 75/D stock I bred one typical male, two male 
abs. and three female abs. These, as expected, were normal 
ab. craskei. 

I feared that further inbreeding between brother and 
sisters of stock 75/A was likely to produce a very weak strain, 
so I decided to try for a pairing between a heterozygote male 
from 75/D stock, and an extreme homozygote female ab. from 
75/A stock. A pairing was seen, but I only had about 50 eggs 
laid by the female before she succumbed to the heat of that 
summer and died. Stock 76/A. 

I obtained another pairing between the other heterozy- 
gote male from 75/D, and a typical female from 75/A. About 
45 eggs were laid by this female before she died. Stock 76/B. 

The intense heat of the 1975 and 1976 summers proved 
to be a nuisance, and my laying cages had to be kept out of 
the full force of the sun, yet some sun is required to get the 
butterflies to mate and lay. Fortunately I have two peach 
trees in my garden which let through dappled sunlight, so my 
laying cages where placed under these trees. I also kept them 
cool by spraying them with water several times a day when it 
was very hot. The insects obviously liked these showers, as 
they would drink readily from the water droplets on the netting 
and flowers. 

In July 1977 stock 76/A produced two male abs. and two 
female abs. This stock should have produced both heterozy- 
gotes and homozygotes, but the four I did manage to rear 
were rather intermediate in appearance between the two 
forms. Stock 76/B did not produce any butterflies, one reached 
pupa but did not hatch. 

I decided to out cross the aberrations from 76/A, with 
wild typical stock from the Chiltern hills, in the hope that it 
would strengthen this weak and difficult strain. On my visit to 
the Chilterns to get males to put with the two bred female 
abs., I was fortunate to find a freshly emerged typical female 
which had not fully expanded its wings, and was presumably 
still a virgin. She was boxed and taken home. 

Pairings were seen between the bred female aberrations 
and the typical wild males, code 77/A and 77/B. These laid 
between 60 and 70 eggs each. I did not see a pairing between 
the wild female and one of my bred males abs., however about 
60 eggs were laid which proved to be fertile, code 77/C. 

In July 1978 I had the following hatch: (1) Stock 77/A. 
One male ab. and one female ab. (2) Stok 77/B. One male ab. 
(3) Stock 77/C. Three males abs. and eight female abs. 

The 77/A and 77/B stocks were very weak despite intro- 
ducing wild blood into the stock. The 77/C stock was rather 


60 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


stronger, and as all 11 specimens which hatched were aberra- 
tions it seems reasonable to assume that the male parent was 
in fact the homozygote form. I attempted to get four pairings 
from the above, as follows: (1) Stock 78/A. Male and female 
abs. from 77/C. Pairing seen and about 130 eggs were laid. I 
sent 50 on to Mr. Tubbs. (2) Stock 78/B. Male ab. from 77/A, 
female ab. from 77/C. Pairing seen but all the eggs were in- 
fertile. (3) Stock 78/C. Male ab. from 77/B, female ab. from 
77/C. No pairings seen and what eggs were laid collapsed. 
(4.) Stock 78/D. Male and female abs. from stock 77/C. 
Pairing seen and about 130 eggs laid 30 of which I sent to Mr. 
Tubbs. 

Both “‘A” and ‘‘D” stocks survived the winter better than 
my previous broods, however I continued to have fatalities 
during the spring, and some even died after changing to pupa. 
I sent several of the dead larvae and pupae to the Unit of 
Invertebrate Virology at Oxford, to see if a virus was respon- 
sible, however they could not detect any, although bacteria 
were present. 

In July 1979 stock 78/A produced four type males, nine 
ab. males, no type females and 11 aberrant females. Stock 
78/D produced five type males, seven male abs., four type 
females and 13 female abs. 

The two stocks added together gave me 13 type, 26 which 
I classed as being the heterozygote form, and 14 being the 
more extreme homozygotes. This gave me 25%, 50%, 25%, 
a result in line with ab. craskei being dominant to type. About 
three-quarters of the insects which hatched in these broods had 
twin apical spots on their forewings, a form which I have not 
bred before. This gene was presumably introduced with the 
wild stock from the Chilterns in 1977, where this form is not 
uncommon. 

I attempted, but failed, to get a pairing between two of 
the homozygotes, the weather at that time was very poor, with 
only brief spells of sunshine, giving little chance of a pairing. 

The results Ralph Tubbs obtained from his broods were 
roughly in line with mine, with neither of us achieving great 
success. This aberrant train seems to be rather weak, and the 
long period that the larva remain small, leaves them very 
vulnerable to even the smallest predator. These I think are 
the main reasons for the disappointing numbers reared in most 
broods. 

The homozygote form is best described as having the 
craskei character intensified. The black central costal blotch 
on the forewing is larger, extending in a solid block to the 
marginal markings in the more extreme specimens, however 
this is not always achieved. On the underside of the forewings 
the black and grey area is larger and extends further along 
the costal margin. On the hindwings the black central band 
is considerably broader than in the heterozygotes. As there is 
considerable variation in both forms, it is not always easy to 
segregate between a good heterozygote and a poor homozy- 
gote. This is particularly so with the males. 


61 
Coleophora albicosta (Haworth, 1828) 


(Lep.: Coleophoridae) — an Anomalous Life-History 
for a Coleophorid Larva 


By K. P. BLAND ! 


While searching for the larval cases of Coleophora albi- 
costa (Haworth, 1828) in the dead flowers of Gorse (Ulex 
europaeus Lin.) collected on Blackford Hill, Edinburgh on Ist 
December 1979, I became aware that the larval case in which 
this species passes the winter and then pupates is different 
from that in which it spends the autumn. The case in which 
the larva feeds in the autumn is roughly cigar-shaped and 
formed from a shaped fragment of the calyx (see Figure 1a). 


mS ~ 
=A nY oS 


The case is thus covered with fine brownish hairs. During 
November the larva abandons this autumn case — often leav- 
ing it attached to some part of a dead gorse flower — and 
seeks out the space between the petals of the keel and the 
upper surface of the boat-shaped lower calyx lobe. In this 
space the larva spins itself a case entirely of silk (see Figure 
1b). The larva in two of the 15 cases found were still in the 
process of spinning their cases and their activities could be 
clearly seen through the transparent case. When looked at a 
few days later, the case was opaque and apparently complete. 
The completed case is brownish in colour, somewhat triangular 
in cross-section and firmly attached to the adjacent parts of 
the dead gorse flower. In this case the larva lives out the 
winter and then pupates. The life-history of C. albicosta is 
thus unusual in that when fully fed the larva abandons its case 
of plant material for a case spun entirely of silk and con- 
structed specially for pupation — this appears to be unique 
amongst the British Coleophoridae. 


*35 Charterhall Road, Edinburgh EH9 3HS. 


62 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/11I/80 


The Immigration of Lepidoptera to the British Isles 
in 1978: A Supplementary Note 


By R. F. BRETHERTON ' and J. M. CHALMERS-HUNnT ” 


The following records of scarcer immigrant species 
arrived too late for inclusion in the main paper (in Ent. Rec., 
91: 81-91), or have otherwise been since reported: — 

RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. S. HANTS. Emery 
Down, 8.10 (J. E. Chainey). S. ESSEX. Coxtie Green, 11.10 
(P. J. Wanstall per G. A. Pyman). SURREY. South Norwood, 
9.10, male f. atrifasciaria. DENBIGHSHIRE. Rhyd y Foel, 
12.10, female, ova fertile. 

DANAUS PLEXIPPUS L. SURREY. Epsom, 11.9, male 
observed in garden by Mrs. Y. Stevens (P. Holdaway, Ent. 
Rec:., 91: 27): 

HIPPOTION CELERIO L. S. HANTS. Emery Down, 
7.11 (J. E. Chainey). 

MYTHIMNA VITELLINA Hubner. S. HANTS. Emery 
Down, 11.10 (J. E. Chainey). 

MYTHIMNA UNIPUNCTA Haw. S. HANTS. Emery 
Down, 8.10, 13.10, 25.10, 28.10, 6.11, 8.11, 9.11 (in trap, all 
singles, seven in all) (J. E. Chainey). N. GLOS. Southrop, 3.11, 
female, 9.11, two males. (Ent. Gaz., 30: 2). 

CHRYSODEIXIS CHALCITES Esp. N. ESSEX. Dover- 
court, 25.9 (P. Smith per G. A. Pyman). 

It should be noted that 19 larvae and three pupae of 
this species have been reported by the Ministry of Agriculture 
as having been found on imported Chrysanthemum in several 
widely distributed places. These finds were mostly in May, and 
could not directly have produced two moths recorded in 
September and October; but the possibility that one or both 
of these were descended from imported larvae cannot be 
entirely excluded. 

NYMPHALIS ANTIOPA L. E. KENT. Sheerness, 21.8, 
one seen flying round creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense) on the 
beach (E. G. Philp, Ent. Rec., 91: 76). 

ACHERONTIA ATROPOS L. SURREY. Tolworth, 30.6, 
male at 2 a.m. (J. Porter). 

Among the commoner species, the presence of V. atalanta 
in a light trap at Emery Down on October 13, at the height of 
the general immigration, is interesting (J. E. Chainey); C. 
cardui was seen on flowers in a garden at Beer, S. Devon, at 
the very late date of December 4 (T. G. Howarth, Ent. Rec., 
91: 9); and C. croceus at Spurn Point on November 5. 

ORTHONAMA OBSTIPATA F. DORSET. Crewkerne, 
27.10, female, infertile. 


‘Folly Hill, Birtley Green, Bramley, Surrey. 


71 Hardcourts Close, West Wickham, Kent. 


63 
The Interaction of Predators and 
‘“‘Eyespot Butterflies’ Feeding on Rotting Fruits and 
Soupy Fungi in Tropical Forests: 
Variations on a Theme Developed by the 
Muyshondts and Arthur M. Shapiro 


By Dr. ALLEN M. YOUNG * 

In recent volumes of The Entomologist’s Record, two 
interesting reports by A. Muyshondt Sr. and Jr. (The Entomo- 
logist’s Record, 88: 283-285) and Dr. A. M. Shapiro (The 
Entomologist’s Record, 89: 293-295) have emphasized that 
few, if any, large butterflies in flight, in both temperate and 
tropical regions are successfully attacked and eaten by birds. 
However, the Muyshondts and Dr. Shapiro point out that 
resting butterflies are probably attacked frequently by verte- 
brate predators. The Muyshondts point out that they some- 
times encounter in nature butterflies with very symmetrical 
pieces missing from both hindwings, indicating an attempted 
attack (‘near miss’’). In some previous field studies of adult 
populations in some species of Morpho (Morphidae) in Costa 
Rica it was possible to observe the frequency of butterflies 
bearing symmetrical wing damage over many months (Young 
1973, Studies in the Neotropical Fauna, 8: 17-50; 1975, Revista 
de Biologia Tropical, 23: 101-123; Young and Thomason, 
1974, Studies in the Neotropical Fauna, 9: 1-34) although this 
aspect of Morpho biology was not discussed to any great 
degree in those reports. The data from those field studies were 
re-examined in light of the comments of the Muyshondts and 
Dr. Shapiro. Furthermore, I add to the discussion to follow, 
observations on other groups of tropical butterflies that feed 
on rotting fruits and decaying, soupy fungal growths on the 
floors of forests. In the lowland and mid-elevation tropical 
rain forests of Central and South America, a substantial 
portion of the day-flying and crespuscular Rhopalocera feed 
on sweet-smelling, highly odoriferous rotting fruits and rotting 
fungal growths on fresh sap flows that have turned “‘soupy”’ as 
a result of microbial activity. The precise nutritive attributes 
of such resources for adult butterflies has not been determined, 
but in the American tropics, three major families of generally 
medium-to-large butterflies, the Morphidae, Satyridae, and 
Brassolidae, exploit them as the major if not sole source of 
food. I term these groups the ‘‘eyespot butterflies’. In light 
of a recent discussion on the possible adaptive significance of 
distinctive eyespot markings on the undersides of the wings of 
Satyridae, Brassolidae, and Morphidae (Young, 1979, Journal 
of the New York Entomological Society, 87: 66-77) and the 
fact that some species of Morpho butterflies are attacked by 
certain birds while in flight (Young, 1972, Oecologia, 7: 209- 
222), there is a need to ascertain estimates of vertebrate pre- 
dation on butterflies in nature. The purpose of this note is to 


* Invertebrate Zoology Section, Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, 
Wisconsin 53233 U.S.A. 


64 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


call attention to additional qualitative and quantitative data on 
this phenomenon. ; 

In large day-flying tropical butterflies such as Morpho, it 
is possible to estimate the intensity of predator attacks on 
flying and resting butterflies by scoring wild-caught individuals 
for “‘symmetrical’’ and ‘‘asymmetrical” wing damage. Butter- 
flies with symmetrical wing damage have corresponding pieces 
missing (of same size and shape) from each of two fore- or 
hindwings, indicating an unsuccessful predator attack while 
resting or feeding (with wings closed). Similarly, most instances 
of unsuccessful pursuit of flying butterflies would be indicated 
by a beak-type fragment of one wing missing, or an asym- 
metrical form of wing damage. A distinguishing feature of 
Morpho (and Morphidae) from the Satyridae and Brassolidae, 
three groups sharing a close but unclear phylogenetic relation- 
ship (Ehrlich and Raven, 1965, Evolution, 18: 586-608; Miller, 
1968, Memo. Amer. Ent. Soc. No. 24. Young and Muyshondt, 
1972, Revista de Biologia Tropical, 20: 231-263; Young and 
Muyshondt, 1975, Studies in the Neotropical Fauna, 10: 
19-56), is that most species possess wings with very contrasting 
upper and lower sides: the upper sides have various hues of 
blue resulting from scales reflecting certain wavelengths of 
light (Lippert and Gentil, 1959, Z. Morph. Okol. Tiere, 48: 
115-122) while the under sides are various shades of brown 
marked with eyespots of varying size and conspicuousness. 
Most satyrids and brassolids are coloured similarly on both 
wing surfaces, although eyespot markings are largely con- 
fined to the under sides. As developed below, such differences 
between the Morphidae on one hand the Satyridae and Bras- 
solidae on the other, have considerable biological significance. 

A striking feature of Central and South American tropical 
rain forests in the vertical stratification of plant life and dis- 
tribution of sun light at different levels (Richard, 1964, The 
Tropical Rain Forest, Cambridge University Press, London). 
Butterflies thriving at different levels in this environmental 
gradient may be subject to differing selection pressures result- 
ing from the activity of vertebrate predators. Counter-selection 
in predators occupying different levels is also operative, For 
some groups of butterflies occupying several levels of the 
forest, beacuse of differing forms of selection pressure from 
insectivorous vertebrate predators, species that spend most of 
their life time in a certain level may evolve morphological and 
behavioural traits different from congeners occupying other 
levels. For example, adult Morpho butterflies can be classified 
into three groups based on certain behavioural and morpho- 
logical features: (1) “ow fliers-primarily ground feeders- 
wings with large eyespots’”; (2) “intermediate to high fliers- 
partial ground feeders-wings wth small eyespots’’; (3) “high 
fliers-occasional ground feeders-wings with small eyespots”. 
These distinctions apply primarily to extant tropical regions 
where considerable primary forest is still present, as such 
relatively undisturbed areas where probably the original 


INTERACTION OF PREDATORS, EYESPOT BUTTERFLIES 65 


environments (‘“‘sphere” of selection pressures) of Morpho. 
Furthermore, these classes are the result of my observations 
of Morpho over the past eleven years, and reports in the 
literature (e.g., Seitz, 1924, Macrolepidoptera of the World, 
Vol. 5, A. Kernan, Stuttgart), and they do not necessarily 
reflect any phylogenetic pattern of Morpho evolution. Clearly, 
in terms of the daily flight activities of Morpho, these classes 
are not mutually exclusive, but rather serve as an attempt to 
characterize the major habitats of different species. ““Low 
fliers” occupy primarily the lower understory and generally 
fly within two meters of the ground; “Intermediate to high 
flies” generally occupy transitional understories and fly within 
2-6 meteres; ‘‘High fliers” are primarily conopy-dwellers. For 
each of these classes the degree of vertebrate predator attack, 
both for flying and resting (and feeding) individuals, may vary 
considerably. 

In order to examine the possible relationship between 
frequency of predator attacks in a general way for Morpho 
butterflies in these three classes, I surveyed a series of museum 
specimens, all wild-caught, and scored each one for sym- 
metrical and asymmetrical wing damage. The data were 
recorded for each species and over 700 specimens, representing 
23 species. Owing to the questionable status of some species, 
and the possible existence of ‘‘super species’ complexes, the 
resulting data are lumped for four species groups (“‘achilles’’, 
“anaxibia’’, ““hecuba’’, and ‘‘catenarius’’) The “achilles group”’ 
contains the species achilles Linnaeus, achillaena Fruhst., 
peleides Kollar, granadensis Butler, vitrea Butler, patroculus 
Hoff., and deidaema Hubner. All of these species are strikingly 
similar in overall appearance, having dull bluish upper wing 
surfaces with broad black or brown margins, and undersides 
with very large colourful conspicouous eyespots. The “‘anaxi- 
bia group” consist of species anaxibia Esper, amathonte Drury, 
cypris Westw., rhetenor Staudinger, menalaus Butler, sulkow- 
skyi Kollar, and aega Hubner. All of these species, especially 
the males, possess brilliant or dazzling blue upper wing surfaces 
with greatly reduced or no borders, and light brown undersides 
with small eyespots. The “‘hecuba group’’ consists of species 
hecuba Linnaeus, theseus Cr., perseus Cr., and hercules Dalm. 
All of these species have dull greenish-white upper wing sur- 
faces with large, diffuse brown borders and some have almost 
entirely brown and orange wings; the undersides are reddish 
brown with small eyespots. The species of the “‘catenarius 
group” are catenarius Fruhst., polyphemus Dbl. & Hew., 
portis Hubner, godarti Guer., and Jlaertes Druce. These 
species possess white, translucent wings (both upper and under 
sides) with small eyespots. The specimens examined, all in the 
collections of the Milwaukee Public Museum, came from 
specific localities in Brazil, Bolivia, British Guyana, French 
Guyana, Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador, Agrentina, Peru, 
Mexico, and El Salvador. More than 80% of the specimens 
males, which is not unexpected for Morpho since females far 


66 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/II1/80 


more secretive in habits and therefore more difficult to capture 
in the wild (e.g., Young, 1973, Studies in the Neotropical 
Fauna, 8: 17-50). 

Of a total of 388 specimens in the ‘achilles group” 
examined, 98 individuals or about 25%, has symmetrical wing 
damage, and about 4% had asymmetrical damage. For the 163 
specimens of the ‘“‘anaxibia group” examined, only 6 or about 
3% had symmetrical damage and 1% had asymmetrical 
damage to the wings. For 71 specimens of the “hecuba group” 
examined, none had symmetrical damage and only 3 indivi- 
dualsor about 4% had asymmetrical wing damage. For 92 
specimens of the ‘“‘catenarius group”, none had symmetrical 
wing damage and only 3 or about 3% had asymmerical 
damage. Although the sample size for the “achilles group” is 
considerably larger than the others, there is a dispropor- 
tionately greater percentage of symmetrical wing damage in 
this group. 

The “achilles group” also falls under the first behavioural- 
morphological class, namely ‘‘lowfliers-primarily group feeders- 
wings with large eyespots”. Thus species of Morpho in the 
“achilles group” spend most of their time on and near the 
ground and feed there. The other species groups are less 
frequently encountered in these places. The “anaxbia group” 
falls into the ‘‘Intermediate to high fliers-partial group feeders- 
wings with small eyespots’’ class while both the “hecuba” 
and “‘catenarius’’ groups fall under the “High fliers-occasional 
ground feeders-wings with small eyespots’’ class. Thus species 
of Morpho possessing only small eyespot markings and 
which are generally high fliers and do not feed primarily on or 
near the ground, are experiencing the least frequency of un- 
successful attacks by vertebrate predators while resting or 
feeding. Presumably therefore it is these species which are 
attacked the least in the wild. The data also indicate that all 
species of Morpho are seldom attacked by birds while flying 
since the frequency of asymmetrical wing damage is less than 
5% in all cases. 

In field samples of Morpho peleides Kollar studied in 
Costa Rica over several years (1970-75), in a total of close to 
400 individuals captured and released, about 40% had sym- 
metrical wing damages confined to the hindwings (pers. obs.). 
In forest understory habitats where Morpho and other butter- 
flies feed on rotting fallen fruits and soupy fungal growths, 
the Cnemidophorus (Teiidae) lizards are active foragers on 
large-bodied insects (pers. obs.). When a captured lizard is 
induced to bite into the closed hindwings of Morpho peleides, 
the symmetrical wing damage resulting from this artificial 
attack matches the damage patterns in wild caught butterflies. 
Wild-caught individuals of Morpho amathonte Drury and 
Morpho theseus Cramer in Costa Rica very seldom show these 
patterns of wing damage. Various types of insectivorous lizards 
such as Cnemidophorus and Ameiva are probably the major 
predators of Morpho butterflies on the floor of Costa Rican 
tropical forests and this may also be the case elsewhere. 


INTERACTION OF PREDATORS, EYESPOT BUTTERFLIES 67 


Of all the six species of Morpho that occur in Costa Rica, 
by far the most commonly encountered species at experimental 
fruit baits on forest floors are Morpho peleides and where 
locally abundant, Morpho granadensis. Elsewhere (Young, 
1979, Journal of the New York Entomological Society, 87: 
66-77) it was argued that conspicuous eyespot markings on the 
undersides of wings in the Morphidae, Brassolidae, and Saty- 
ridae evolved primarily as an adaptation to lower the chance 
of successful attack by a visually-hunting vertebrate predator, 
especially when the intake of fermenting and intoxicating 
juices may reduce the effectiveness of sensory-motor responses 
of the butterflies for escape. As for attacks on large flying 
butterflies, the wing movements in association wth reflective 
colouration play major roles in evasive behaviour of Morpho 
to avian predators (Young, 1972, Oecologia, 7: 209-222) 
although the well known Central American ornithologist Dr. 
Alexander F. Skutch has observed Rufous-tailed Jacamars 
(Galbula ruficauda) successfully feeding on flying butterflies 
(pers. comm.). In Dr. Skutch’s experiences, “‘jacamars capture 
more butterflies than any other Central American birds” 
(pers. comm.), perhaps suggesting that most Central American 
birds do not capture butterflies. Therefore, the greatest 
predator-type selection pressure is operating on resting or 
feeding butterflies in agreement with the Muyshondts obser- 
vations of few if any butterflies being taken in flight. Such 
selection pressure is greatest for Morpho that spend most of 
their time near or on the ground, and it is probably relaxed 
for those species occupying the upper regions of the forest. 

If the conspicous colouration of the upperwing surfaces 
in many species of Morpho evolved for both courtship and 
evasive behaviour against avian predators (Young, 1972, 
Oecologia, 7: 209-222), it may be deleterious to these butter- 
flies when resting or feeding. A sudden flash of blue produced 
by a sun fleck hitting a group of feeding morphos (Young, 
1975, Revista de Biologia Tropical, 23: 101-123) may attract 
an active foraging insectivorous vertibrate such as a lizard, 
and result in an attack. Thus brilliant blue colouration in 
species of Morpho that live near the ground is not adaptive in 
terms of escape from predators while butterflies are resting or 
feeding. At rotting banana baits or natural accumulations of 
sweet-smelling fallen fruits, many other insects accumulate 
and when Morpho is disturbed by these, there results consider- 
able flashing of wings without actual flight. Such situations 
may increase the probability that feeding butterflies will be 
detected by predators. Species of Morpho feeding higher up in 
the forest may be less exposed to such factors. Larger eyespot 
markings in Morpho and other butterflies feeding near or on 
the forest floor may function to either discourage attacks by 
predators, or provide camouflage colouration for passive 
escape (Stradling, 1976, Ecol. Entomol., 1: 135-138; Young, 
1979, Journal of the New York Entomol. Soc., 87: 66-77). 
Although the actual levels of successful attacks on feeding or 


68 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/II1/80 


resting butterflies are not determined, wing caches of Morpho 
peleides in lowland tropical rain forest indicate the vertebrate 
predation levels can sometimes be high (Young, 1972, Oecolo- 
gia, 7: 209-222). 

The lesson to be learned from Morpho in Central and 
South American rain forests is that species of the large 
“achilles group” experience the greatest risk of being attacked 
by vertebrate predators while resting and feeding on the forest 
floor. These data generally support the Muyshondts’ view that 
instances of considerable predation in butterflies occur when 
butterflies are resting or feeding, and that such predation does 
not come from birds. This is not meant to imply that there are 
instances of heavy avian predation on butterflies. Even perch- 
ing aposematically-coloured and distasteful butterflies such as 
the Monarch, Danaus plexippus L. are attacked and partially 
eaten by certain species of birds in the wild (Calvert, Hedrick, 
and Brower, 99, Science, 204: 847-851), and sometimes dis- 
tasteful and aposematically-coloured Ithomiine butterflies in 
flight are plucked from the air by birds in Brazil (Brown and 
Neto, 1976, Biotropica, 8: 146-147) and these butterflies are 
generally cryptic in both upper and lower wing colour patterns. 
Both groups of butterflies are largely confined to the lower 
understory forest floor, and a combination of eyespot mark- 
ings and subdued wing colours or translucency, probably func- 
tion to conceal these butterflies while resting and feeding. In 
field samples of satyrids in the genera Antirrhaea, Caerois, 
Cithaerias, Euptlchia, Taygetis and others captured or 
observed at rotting banana baits in Costa Rican lowland tropi- 
cal rain forests over the past eight years, very few individuals 
had symmetrical asymmetrical wing damage, indicating a low 
incidence of unsuccessful attacks by insectivorous vertebrates. 
If these butterflies are common targets for predators the tell- 
tale symmetrical or asymmetrical wing damage patterns would 
appear more frequently in wild-caught individuals. An absence 
of such wing damage has been observed for Caligo, Brassolis, 
Catoblepia, Eryphanis, and Opsiphanes. The lack of flash 
colouration characteristic of Morpho, along with totally sub- 
dued colours and eyespot markings, provides effective con- 
cealment of these butterflies from insectivorous vertebrates 
wandering on the forest floor. Other features of these adapta- 
tions are discussed elsewhere (Young, 1979, Journal New York 
Entomol. Soc., 87: 66-77). 

In summary, while it is probably true that most large 
butterflies are seldom attacked by birds when flying, those 
feeding or resting on or near the ground are attacked in 
greater frequency by other types of small insectivorous verte- 
brates such as teiid lizards in tropical forests. If particular 
species are being targets for such predators, it is expected that 
a certain fraction of attacks will result in near misses, resulting 
in butterflies having symmetrical wing damage patterns, especi- 
ally along the edges of the hindwings, since presumably most 
of these attacks come from behind. If the predator jumps down 


INTERACTION OF PREDATORS, EYESPOT BUTTERFLIES 69 


from a low arboreal perch, the damage may appear on the 
forewings. Flying butterflies attacked by birds and missed are 
expected to have beak-type damage to one wing. By scoring 
wild-caught butterflies for each type of wing damage, and 
excluding tattering from other sources, estimates of the fre- 
quencies of both kinds of unsuccessful attacks can be obtained. 
For those species of Morpho that fly in lower understory and 
have dull blue wings with large eyespots, the highest ferquency 
of symmetrical wing damage is found; such damage, and asym- 
metrical damage is virtually non-existent in high-flying species 
with brilliant wings and small eyespots. Morphos may be best 
suited for upper forest understory and canopy habitats, but 
selection might have favoured some species occupying the 
lower regions of the forest, and for feeding on sweet-smelling 
fallen fruits and soupy fungal growth. Other groups of lower 
understory butterflies regularly feeding on these resources, 
such as the Satridae and Brassolidae, have become highly 
adapted to such predators since the combination of subdued 
colours or translucent wings and eyespots of varying size, is 
likely responsible for the absence of symmerical wing damage 
resulting from near misses by predators. To what extent verte- 
brate predation on resting or feeding butterflies on the floors 
of tropical forests actually regulate populations of individual 
species remains undetermined. 


THE PUPATION REQUIREMENTS OF ECTOEDEMIA ARGENTI- 
PEDELLA (ZELLER). — Recently I received from Holland an 
interesting paper on the biology of E. argentipedella (Franken- 
huijzen, A. van & de Vries, D., 1979. Waarnemingen aan 
Ectoedemia argentipedella (Zeller), een mineermot op berk 
(Lep., Nepticulidae). Ent. Ber., Deel, 39: 129-135). The 
authors state that it is obligatory for the larvae to have soil 
particles with which to cover their cocoons. This is fully in 
accordance with my own experience and in The Moths and 
Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland, 1: 197, I state 
accordingly that the cocoon is spun on the surface of the soil. 

What, then, about the 16 specimens of E. argentipedella 
I reared from a nest-box (Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var., 90: 
244)? I am afraid I may have made a wrong assumption and 
suppressed a factor which did not seem to be relevant at the 
time. I received the nests from the warden of Birch Wood 
Nature Reserve in large polythene bags, each containing more 
than one nest. The bag in question contained, besides tits’ 
nests, a blackbirds’ nest, doubtless from the type of nest-box 
with a large rectangular entrance aperture. Since the tits’ nests 
were ideal pupation material for most nepticulids and I was 
forgetful of my past experience, I jumped to the conclusion 
that these were the source of my moths. It could have been, 
and probably was, the blackbirds’ nest which, as almost every 
reader will know, is stiffened with clay. My note does not, 
therefore, contradict the findings of the Dutch authors on the 
pupation habits of this species. — A. M. Emmet, Labrey 
Cottage, Saffron Walden, Essex, CBI! 3AF. 23.i.80. 


70 ENTOMOLOGIST S RECORD I/III/80 
Biston herefordi (¢ betularia x & strataria): 
The H. B. D. Kettlewell 1974 Hybrids, A Report 


By Sir Cyrit CLARKE, K.B.E., M.D., F.R.S.* 

In February 1979, I happened to see an advertisement in 
the Insektenbérse for German pupae of Biston strataria. Hav- 
ing at that time large stocks of Biston betularia pupae of the 
three forms, carbonaria, insularia and typical I thought it 
would be of interest to try and obtain the cross between 
betularia and strataria which I knew had been obtained before 
and named herefordi (Tutt). To my surprise I could find no 
reference to the hybrid in Bernard Kettlewell’s book “Evolu- 
tion of Melanism’’, so I wrote to him as I felt sure he had bred 
the insect. He replied (21st March 1979) “Thank you for 
nudging my elbow re the hybrid betularia x strataria. | am 
amazed to find that I have never published the results. I 
managed to obtain with very great difficulty two pairings, 
° betularia typica x o Strataria. I obtained a small number 
of imagines from both these pairings and in one brood there 
was complete segregation of typical and melanic’. He con- 
tinued ‘I took considerable time and trouble to develop the 
technique of producing herefordi, the main thing being that 
the Peppered Moth pupae must be put into warmth at an 
early date so that they hatch in late March when strataria is 
available. The technique of producing the hybrid I am sure 
you know well. The ? betularia and ¢ strataria are put toget- 
her in a cage which is flooded with scent of @ strataria, 
which is obtained by having some virgin 99 strataria in a 
muslin bag inside the cage or just adjacent to it”’. 

In the meantime I (C.A.C.) went ahead with my own 
herefordi project and first looked up the references. Tutt, 
(1906) states “In 1890, Chapman forced pupae of Amphidasys 
betularia in order to pair the imagines with those of A. pro- 
dromaria (= strataria) and succeeded in obtaining a pairing, 
a o A. strataria with a large black ¢ A. betularia. Many fer- 
tile eggs were laid, the larvae hatched and fed up well, some 
half-dozen missing a moult, not feeding died (sic) without 
being up to full size, and assuming the pupal stage earlier 
than the others. All the imagines from these emerged in 
autumn or winter and died without being observed at the 
time. The rest of the larvae only produced about a dozen 
pupae, which refused to be forced, and died with the exception 
of two, which lived on until June, apparently meaning to go 
over until another season (Ent. Rec., ii, p. 83)’. Tutt (1906) 
continues, when contrasting various interspecific hybrids, “‘the 
larvae of Amiphidasys hybr. herefordi (Ent. Rec., ii, p. 83) 
showed great variation in the rate of feeding up, and in the 
length of the pupal stage. Some half-dozen of these larvae 
missed a moult, pupated early, and produced imagines the 
same autumn, whilst the rest developed into pupae which 
went over the winter, one attempting to go over a second 
winter’’** 


Department of Genetics, University of Liverpool. 
** The full text of Chapman’s note is given as an appendix. 


PLATE VII 


Biston herefordi Tutt 
Brood StB/12/74 showing segregation of the two forms. 
In Brood StB/14/74 all the insects were of the pale form (not shown). 


BISTON HEREFORDI (2 BETULARIA X G STRATARIA) 71 


Scorer, A. G., (1913), also mentions the hybrid and again 
as occurring between 2 betularia and ¢ strataria and not the 
reciprocal. 

Siggs, L. W., (1976) reported a successful pairing between 
a 2 insularia and a o strataria. He distributed the eggs among 
various colleagues, including Dr. Kettlewell. The total emer- 
gences amounted to only four moths (Dr. J. A. Bishop, 
University of Liverpool, pers. comm.) and these appeared 
to resemble insularia though in no case did the wings expand 
properly. This was probably because, unexpectedly, the insects 
came out in the summer about two weeks after pupation and 
the breeding arrangements were unsatisfactory. In none of 
these references is there any mention of trick pairings, so 
presumably this is not obligatory. 

Bernard Kettlewell had asked me to send him any 
references which I found and this I did on 12th April 1979, 
by which time he was in failing health. After his death on 11th 
May 1979, Mrs. Kettlewell sent me the herefordi moths and 
asked me to write up the work, and Mrs. R. M. Wickett, 
Bernard’s secretary, sent me his notes. 

The details of his two broods are set out below. 

The Kettlewell (1974) broods of B. herefordi 
Brood St.B/12/74 92 f. carbonaria betularia x @ strataria ex 
Steeple Barton (see plate). Mating presumably carried out in 
April 1974, eggs hatched 8.5.74. 


Emergences typicals melanics 
27.8.74 3 29 Og 
1 2 cripple 
28.8.74 1 2 cripple 
4.9.74 19 
9.9.74 1 2 cripple bg 
a 22 
12.9.74 ) 29 
18.9.74 1 2 cripple 


Brood St.B/14/74 @ typical betularia x 3 strataria ex Steeple 
Barton. Mating presumably carried out in April 1974, eggs 
hatched 10.5.74. 


Emergences typicals 
9.9.74 1 2 black body 
10.9.74 1 2 normal body 
12.9.74 3 29, 1 with black body 
16.9.74 1 2 cripple, dead 


There is no record of any attempts at back crosses or F, 
pairings. 

Brood St.B/12/74 is shown in the plate. It will be noticed 
that the “carbonaria’ are very similar to pure betularia f. 
carbonaria and would certainly be scored as such (though 
small) if caught in an M.V. trap. The light coloured insects, 
however, are intermediate between strataria and betularia. 
In brood St.B/14/74 where there was no melanic betularia 
parent, all the insects are intermediate between betularia and 
strataria. 


72 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/II1/80 
Discussion 

It is of great interest that in both broods all the moths 
were female. This is exactly the opposite of what would be 
expected from Haldane’s rule (Haldane 1922). This states that 
when in hybrids there is a deficiency of one sex it is the 
heterogametic one, i.e. in Lepidoptera usually the female. 
Although we have not examined the chromosomes of 
betularia, yet we have found on numerous occasions that when 
testes are present in the larva the heteropyknotic body is lack- 
ing in the somatic cells (‘Smith negative”) whereas when 
ovaries are present the body is easily identified (“Smith posi- 
tive’’) (see Cross and Gill, 1979). This is the usual situation in 
the Lepidoptera, the heteropyknotic spot being part of the Y 
chromosome, females being XY and males XX. We have yet 
no similar information on strataria. The sex ratio upset, 
therefore, in the hybrids remains unsolved as does the reason 
why hybridization interferes with diapause, both parent 
species being univoltine. 

My (C.A.C) attempts to breed herefordi in 1979 failed. 
I had plenty of forced betularia females and a few strataria 
males but they took no interest in each other. I did not, 
however, have any fresh strataria females so could not try the 
trick mating. However, from what Bernard Kettlewell wrote 
it seems that even with this technique the hybrid is not easy 
to obtain. Further studies are clearly worth while and it would 
be particularly interesting if back crosses or F.s could be 
obtained. I have found no record of attempts at the reciprocal 
cross 9 strataria x 3 betularia and this also needs investi- 
gating. 

The Kettlewell hybrids have been deposited with the 
British Museum Natural History under the care of Mr. D. 
S. Fletcher and are now in the RCK collection. 

I am most grateful to Mrs. Bernard Kettlewell and to 
Mrs. R. M. Wickett for their help in making this paper pos- 
sible, and I think that Bernard would have been pleased to see 
it in the Journal to which he was an editorial consultant. 

Appendix 
T. A. CHAPMAN’S 1891 NOTE 

On HyBRIDISING AMPHIDASYS PRODROMARIA AND A. 
BETULARIA. — In this matter I can record from one point of 
view a great success, from another a disastrous failure. The 
experiment is so interesting that it will doubtless be followed 
up by others with more leisure and capacity to bring it to a 
successful issue than I unfortunately have, and it may be of 
assistance if I record my own experiments. I have bred pro- 
dromaria for several years, and it occurred to me to ascertain 
whether it would cross with betularia; so in the spring of 1890 
I obtained some pupae of that species and forced them in 
order to bring about their emergence along with prodromaria. 
In this I was successful, and a @ prodromaria paired with a 
large black 9 berularia, which laid a large number of eggs 
which proved to be fertile. These hatched and fed up well at 
first on sallow, afterwards on oak, and were as healthy and 
thriving a brood of larvae as one would wish to see. Some half 


BISTON HEREFORDI (? BETULARIA X 6d STRATARIA) 43 
dozen of them did what I have not met with in prodromaria 
(I have reared few betularia), viz., omitted a moult, and 
assumed the last skin one moult earlier, and not feeding up to 
full size, pupated rather earlier than the others. On looking at 
these in early spring, I found the moths had emerged during 
the winter, and somewhat damaged, had died. The mass of the 
brood from want of attention became unhealthy, as did also 
prodromaria and some other larvae I had, and in the result 
only a dozen produced healthy pupae. And here again I made 
a mistake, I eneavoured to force these in March to bring them 
out with prodromaria, but instead of taking to this treatment 
kindly as betularia does, they refused to be forced. One or 
two are still alive showing no signs of emergence; the rest 
appear to be dead. In forcing pupae, it happens not unfre- 
quently, more with some species than with others, instead of 
yielding, they appear to conclude that ‘they have missed their 
proper season, that full summer is upon them, and that they 
must tide over till the following season. Probably this could 
be avoided by a proper graduation of temperature suitable 
to each species. This, however, was the result of the experi- 
ment with the hybrids. This spring I repeated the attempt to 
get hybrid eggs and had several hybrid pairings; these all 
proved to be infertile, but as all my prodromaria proved also 
to be infertile except one batch, I attribute this result not to 
any infertility due to hybridisation, but to the fact that my 
prodromaria were in the fourth year of their domestication, 
and were also as already noted, not a healthy brood. The 
larvae of the hybrids were not exactly intermediate between 
those of the two parents but consisted of a majority much 
more like betularia and a minority that closely resembled 
prodromaria. The pupae on the other hand, so far as concerns 
the anal armature are much more exactly intermediate. — T. 
A. CHAPMAN, Firbank, Hereford. 

References 

Chapman, T. A., 1891. Scientific Notes on hybridising Amphidasys 
prodromaria and A. betularia. Ent. Rec. 2: p. 83. 

Cross, W., Gill, A., 1979. A new technique for the prospective survey 
of sex chromatin using the larvae of Lepidoptera. Journ. Lep. Soc., 
33 (1): 50-55. 

Haldane, J. B. S., 1922. Sex ratio and uni-sexual sterility in hybrid 
animals. J. Genet., 12: 101-109. 

Scorer, A. G., 1913. The Entomologist’s Log-Book, p. 40. 

Siggs, L. W., 1976. An attempt to cross Biston strataria Hufn. with 
Biston betularia L. f. insularia. Ent. Rec., 88: p. 100. 

Tutt, J. W., 1906. British Lepidoptera, pp. 11 and 30. 

—TEXT FOR PLATE— 

Fig. 1. StB/12/74 showing segregation of the two forms. 


Fig. 2. In brood StB/14/74 all the insects were of the pale form and 
resembled the non-melanics in brood StB/12/74. 


Corrigenda 

In the Obituary of Dr. Kettlewell on p. 253 of vol. 91, 
I was wrong about his place of birth. It was not Birmingham, 
but East Howden in Yorkshire. — Sir Cyrit A. CLARKE. 

In ‘“‘Notes on the Coleophoridae’ by J. Newton on p. 236 
of vol. 91 of the Record, the 18th line down should have 
read: — ‘“‘respective foodplants. There are several claims that 
alnifoliae’’. — Ep1tTor. 


74 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/I1I/80 


Blue Moons and Brimstones 
By CHARLES F. CoWAN * 

It is asking for trouble to write up old notes and second- 
hand information without checking the original literature. I 
was guilty of exactly that (Vol. 90, pp. 302-304) when sug- 
gesting that either Linnaeus or Johansson, or both, were guilty 
of deception in 1763 when naming “Papilio ecclipsis’’, the 
decorated Gonepteryx rhamni. Having at last obtained a copy 
of Johansson’s thesis (1763, Amoen. Akad. 6: 384-415) I 
hasten to remedy matters. The mystery goes far deeper. 

This peculiar-looking Brimstone dates from before Lin- 
naeus was born! Johansson’s description of P. ecclipsis (p. 406, 
no. 67) includes the key phrases ‘‘Pet. gaz. t. 6, t. 10, f. 6, 
bona’ followed by ‘‘Habitat in America septentrionali, De 
Geer’’. In his introduction (p. 390) he relates how he was 
invited to see De Geer’s insects, mostly from Pensylvania (sic, 
the original spelling), and closes by naming eight which, with- 
out having actually seen them himself, he would not have 
believed in; the last, and only Lepidopteron among them, being 
P. ecclipsis. 

Now those two key phrases in the description mean that 
the syntypes of P. ecclipsis included De Geer’s specimen(s) 
from N. America and the specimen figured by Petiver in his 
Gazophylacium 6, pl. 10, fig. 6, which was notably a good 
likeness. Petiver must have engraved that figure in or before 
1707. He called it ““The Sulphur with black spots and blue 
moons”. 

So how did Petiver get his pre-1707 specimen(s), and what 
happened to them? And how did De Geer obtain his, which 
were in his collection at Stockholm in 1763? And how is it that 
two examples, which may not even be syntypes, are now in the 
Linnaean collection? Linnaeus died just eight weeks before 
De Geer, 

Being unable now to visit museums and libraries, I must 


eee oe queries to others. Perhaps our Editor might solve 
them? 


*4 Thornfield Terrace, Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria, LA11 7DR. 


PTEROSTICHUS ANGUSTATUS (DrFT.) (CoL.: CARABIDAE). IN 
ANGuS: First ScotrisH REcorD. — I took a specimen of this 
species from under a stone in Templeton Woods, Angus (No. 
(37) 350340), a mixed pine and birch woodland, on the out- 
skirts of the city of Dundee, on 10th June 1979. Lindroth (Col: 
Carabidae, Vol.: IV, part 2, Handbks. Id. British Insects, 
1974) states that this species is apparently a newcomer to 
Britain since 1900. Previously the most northern record 
appears to be Belsay in Northumberland (Frank, J. H. (1964), 
Ent. mon. mag., 100: 56). Thus this species appears still to be 
spreading north. I wish to thank Dr. M. L. Luff of the Depart- 
ment of Agriculture, University of Newcastle on Tyne, for 
checking the identity of the specimen. — A. GarsipE, Dundee 
Museum and Art Galleries, Albert Square, Dundee. 


iS 
Audio Mimicry in Moths? 


By A. C. Morton, B.Sc.* 


It is well known that insectivorous bats are able to find 
their prey while flying in complete darkness by emitting a 
series of ultrasonic cries and locating the direction and dis- 
tance of sources of echoes. Since animals must be able to 
perceive and react to predators if they are to survive, it is 
perhaps not surprising to find that some night-flying moths — 
notably members of the families Noctuidae, Geometridae and 
Arctiidae — have ears that can detect the bats’ untrasonic 
cries. On hearing the approach of a bat, these moths take 
evasive action, abandoning their usual cruising flight to go 
into sharp dives or erratic loops. Moths taking such evasive 
action on a bat’s approach have a significantly higher chance 
of survival than those that continue on course (Roeder, K. N. 
& A. E. Treat, 1961, American Scientist, 49: 135-148). 

In this contest of hide-and-seek it would seem much to a 
moth’s advantage to remain as quiet as possible, since the 
sensitive ears of a bat would soon locate a noisy target. It is 
therefore surprising to note that many moths of the family 
Arctiidae are capable of generating trains of ultrasonic clicks, 
and do so if they are exposed to a string of ultrasonic pulses 
while they are suspended in a stationary flight. As such 
altruism is not characteristic of the predator-prey relationship 
one is left to question the value of this aspect of the moth’s 
behaviour. 

Dorothy C. Dunning and Professor Kenneth Roeder of 
Tufts University demonstrated that the clicks made by arctiids 
seem to be heeded by bats as a warning (Science, 147: 173-174; 
1965). Partly tamed bats, trained to catch mealworms that 
were tossed into the air by a mechanical device, commonly 
swerved away from their target if they heard tape-recorded 
arctiid clicks just before the moment of contact. 

Bats, of course, are not the only predators moths must 
try to avoid. Moths are also at risk when they are resting 
during the day and like many other animals they often seek 
protection by employing cryptic colouration, or adopting 
warning colouration and patterns to advertise the fact that 
they are unpalatable. It is noticeable that some striking 
examples of warning colouration are displayed by arctiid 
moths, and it surely cannot be mere coincidence that it is 
apparently these species which emit clicks that bring about 
avoidance behaviour in bats. Clearly, an unpalatable species 
cannot use warning colouration to advertise this fact to noc- 
turnal predators, and thus it would seem that an additional 
system had to be evolved. 

However, not all the species of moths which emit such 
clicks possess warning colouration, so it might be that these 
species are in fact palatable. But they can reduce nocturnal 
predation by adopting the clicking behaviour of the unpala- 


*2 Barnes Street Cottages, Golden Green, Tonbridge, Kent. 


76 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


table models they mimic. If this is so, it would seem that in the 
moths there is an example of non-visual mimcry which has so 
far attracted little attention. 

Sound mimicry seems to have been detected by Gaul in 
1952 (Psyche, 59; 82-83) in the wasp Dolichovespula arenaria 
and fly Spilomyia hamifera; two species which are found in 
the north-eastern United States and are extremely similar in 
appearance. In 1965 Brower and Brower (Am. Nat., 99; 173- 
188) showed that sound mimicry also occurred in the drone 
fly Elisratis vinetorum, which mimics Apis mellifera. However, 
I have not managed to find any reference to an example where 
sound mimicry is not an adjunct to colour mimicry and thus 
the possibility of this occurring in moths is most interesting. 

I have recently begun to examine this possibility in more 
detail and would be most grateful if any readers would be 
prepared to assist me by providing living specimens of any 
common species of the families Noctuidae, Geometridae and 
Arctiidae for tests of clicking behaviour and palatability. 


SELECTION of Lectotype OF UGyoPs CAELATUS (WHITE) 
— Ugyops caelatus (Fulgoroidea: Delphacidae) was described 
by F. B. White (under the preoccupied generic name of Cona) 
on the basis of an unspecified number of adults and nymphs 
collected in New Zealand and presented to him by a Captain 
Broun (1879, Entomologst’s Mon. Mag., 15: 218). Since 
White’s death, the location and even the existence of this 
material have remained generally unknown until very recently, 
when Mr. M. A. Taylor, Keeper of Natural Sciences at the 
Perth Museum, found a part of it, if not the whole, while 
reorganising the White collection in this museum. It comprises 
seven males and five females of U. caelatus, ten nymphs, 
probably of this species, and eight females and one mutilated 
specimen of U. pelorus Fennah. No type specimen was 
designated by White for his species, and none has been selected 
since. All the specimens are covered by the original description 
and have syntypical status. I have accordingly selected and 
now designate a lectotype for Ugyops caelatus (White) (= 
Cona caelata). LECTOTYPE, male (of two gummed on a 
card) with tegmina and hind legs extended; mount with letters 
““NZB” (New Zealand, Broun) pencilled below; pin bearing 
three labels — “Buchanan White colln. large cabinet 22”, 
“Perth Museum 1979 1574 9”, “Ugyops [Cona] caelatus 
(White) det. R. G. Fennah’’. The specimen chosen conforms 
with the characterisation given by Hutton (1898, Trans. N.Z. 
Institute 30: 187) and myself (1965, Bull. Brit. Mus. (Nat. 
Hist.) Ent. 17: 7). No specimen agreeing with the figure 
(Q30) given by Tillyard (1926, Insects of Australia and New 
Zealand, 167) was found in the type series. — R. G. FENNAH, 
c/o Commonwealth Institute of Entomology, British Museum 
(Natural History), Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD. 


q7 
Names involving the Madeira and Surinam 
Cockroaches (Dictuoptera, Blattodea, Nauphoetidae) 


By D. Keita McE. KEvAN * 

1. In the course of various studies, some of which also 
involve colleagues, I have recently had occasion to refer to two 
cosmopolitan species of cockroach, one of which (the Surinam 
cockroach) is naturalized in some greenhouses in the United 
Kingdom and elsewhere, and the other (the Madeira cock- 
roach) widely distributed throughout the warmer parts of the 
world, frequently occurring as a storage pest. The latter species 
is not established in the United Kingdom nor in countries of 
similar latitude, but it is, nevertheless, quite often imported 
with produce from abroad. Both species are referred to and 
figured by Ragge (1965), the one as Pycnoscelus surinamensis 
(Linnaeus) and the other as Leucophaea maderae (Fabricius), 
by which names they are currently and generally known. There 
is no problem regarding the specific parts of their names, nor 
does the generic name of the former species now present any 
real difficulty, although a comment will be made later regard- 
ing it. On the other hand, the generic name Leucophaea 
proves to be a junior synonym of Pycnoscelus and must be 
replaced by Rhyparobia. As the species is of some economic 
importance, the error should be corrected as soon as possible. 
The story is as follows: 

Blatta surinamensis was described from Surinam by Lin- 
naeus (178: 424).1 The genus Pycnoscelus was erected by 
Scudder (1863: 421-422), who described in it a single species, 
P. obscurus (l.c.: 422-423), on the basis of a single, immature 
female (not a mature male as he stated), taken “in woods 
under stones” at Greenfield, Massachusetts. (How it came to 
be in the open there — if the data are correct — is proble- 
matical.) The species was synonymized with B. surinamensis 
by Kirby (1904: 151), but he placed this in the genus Leuco- 
phaea, which was erected as a subgenus of Panchlora Bur- 
meister, 1838, by Brunner von Wattenwyl (1865: 278), who 
had included surinamensis therein. Kirby simply did not 
approve of the names of taxa being based upon immature 
specimens. 

Leucophaea, at the time of its description, included not 
only surinamensis, but also three other species, of which 
maderae (as “‘P. Maderae Fab.’’) was one. Kirby (I.c.) indicated 
surinamensis to be the type-species of Leucophaea, which had, 
in fact, already been done (see below), although Kirby was 
apparently not aware of this. Hebard (1917: 192, 193) pointed 
out that Kirby’s preference for Leucophaea was invalid, 


* Department of Entomology and Lyman Entomological Museum and 
Research Laboratory, Macdonald Campus, McGill University, Ste. 
Anne-de-Bellevue, Province of Quebec, Canada H9X 1CO. 


* There is a female specimen of this species in the Linnean Collection, 
London. It is labelled ‘““E.Ind/N.E.K.”. It is presumably not a type, 
however, for the holotype is designated by Shelford (1908) from 
DeGeer’s collection, now in the Stockholm Museum. 


78 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


Pycnoscelus having precedence for the taxon including suri- 
namensis, since obscurus was a junior synonym of this. To 
strengthen his argument, Hebard (op. cit.: 192n) pointed out 
that Rehn (1903: 282) had, in any event, already designated 
Blatta maderae (described from the island of Madeira by 
Fabricius (1781: 341)*) as the type-species of Leucophaea, thus 
invalidating Kirby’s type selection. 

Kirby (op. cit.: 150) had, in fact, regarded maderae as 
the type-species of Rhyparobia of Krauss (1892: 165). That it 
was such was undoubted, since maderae was the only species 
included in that genus at the time of its erection. Rhyparobia 
was therefore rendered by Hebard (1917) a junior synonym of 
Leucophaea, and this seemed to have settled the matter. The 
valid names for the two species were considered to be Pycnos- 
celus surinamensis (Linnaeus) and Leucophaea maderae (Fab- 
ricius), as noted above. Most authors have accepted this view, 
perhaps most importantly Princis (1964: 263; 1965: 293-294). 

Nevertheless, authors from Hebard (1917) onwards, if 
they have considered the matter at all, seem to save overlooked 
the action of Caudell (1903: 331), who had indicated suri- 
namensis to be the type-species of Leucophaea shortly before 
Rehn had designated maderae as such. Caudell’s paper was 
published on 15th June 1930; Rehn’s not until September of 
the same year! What is more, Caudell (1903: 311) had clearly 
and deliberately stated maderae to be the type-species of 
Rhyparobia (since this genus was monotypic when described, 
though he did not say so). As a result of this action, Leuco- 
phaea became a junior synonym of Pycnoscelus as soon as the 
latter’s type-species, obscurus, was recognized as a subjective 
junior synonym of surinamensis (Kirby, 1904). Rhyparobia, 
the next available name for the genus that included mederae, 
eg indicated by Kirby, was thus validated and remains 
valid. 

How Hebard (who was very careful in such matters) 
omitted to take Caudell’s paper into consideration is difficult 
to imagine (unless it was out of loyalty to his great friend 
Rehn), for a copy would certainly have been in his hands soon 
after publication. (It was not in an obscure journal and the 
two authors regularly exchanged separata.) How Princis, in 
particular, as compiler of a catalogue, missed its significance 
is also surprising. Princis (1964: 265; 1965: 300) actually cites 
Caudell’s paper, but he refers only to the fact that the generic 
name used was Panchlora. This was the name used in a work 


In the Banks Collection, British Museum (Natural History), London, 
which contains many of Fabricus’ types, there are two female specimens 
of the species, both in fairly good condition, standing over a rect- 
angular, black-bordered cabinet label: “BI. Maderae/Fabr. sp. n.2” 
written in an ancient hand (? Banks’). Each of these specimens bears 
on its pin a square, black-bordered label, the one reading ‘“‘Ma/dera’”’ 
and the other ‘Bra/silia”. The specimen bearing the first of these 
should not, apparently, be regarded as the holotype of B. maderae, 
es according to Princis (1963: 193) is in the University Museum, 
xford. 


MADEIRA AND SURINAM COCKROACHES 79 


to which Caudell was referring, not that which Caudell him- 
self regarded as being correct. The following is a direct quota- 
tion from Caudell (1903: 331): 
“Panchlora surinamnsis Linnaus. 
This belongs to and is the type of Brunner’s [sub] 
genus Leucophaea. 
“Panchlora maderae Olivier [sic]. 
This species has been removed from Panchlora by Dr. 
Krauss [(1892)], and forms the type of his genus 
Rhyparobia.”’ 

Gurney (1953), another careful worker, aiso discussed 
the nomenclature of this species, but he, too, missed the 
Caudell (1903) paper. 

Although Rhyparobia maderae (Fbricius), to use its valid 
name, is an economically important species with an extensive 
literature under the generic name Leucophaea, the name 
Rhyparobia has often, if not as frequently, been used until 
comparatively recent times (see Princis, 1965: 298-304). There 
is this no good case for appealing to the International Com- 
mission on Zoological Nomenclature to validate Leucophaea 
in favour of Rhyparobia on the grounds that stability of 
nomenclature would be seriously threatened or confusion 
likely to reign if this were not done. 

2. As the generic name Pycnoscelus has inevitably been 
drawn into the above discussion, it might also be worth com- 
menting upon the spelling of this name, for it has appeared 
also as “Pyconscelis’’ (which seems to flow more naturally 
from one’s pen). 

Scudder (1863: 421) clearly gave the Greek derivation of 
of the name as puknos, and skélos, (meaning “thick” and 
‘leg’, though he did not say so). Princis (1963: 92, 195) 
emended the name to Pycnoscelis, maintaining (l.c.: 195n) 
that there was no such Greek word as “‘skelos’’ and that it 
should be “‘skelis’’ (with the genitive -idis, giving the family 
name Pycnoscelididae*). This is, in fact, not true, even if the 
latter might be considered to be preferable. Furthermore, the 
fact that Scudder (/.c.) was precise (even had he been in error 
as Princis maintained) would preclude any emendation under 
the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Princis 
(1964: 263) again used ‘“‘Pycnoscelis’”’ and ‘‘Pycnoscelididae’’, 
but later (Princis, 1967: 709), he acknowledged his “‘boner’’ by 
reverting (without comment) to ‘‘Pycnoscelus’”’ and ‘‘Pycnos- 
celidae”’. 

3. With reference to family-group names that relate to 
the two genera discussed herein, there has been, in recent 
years, considerable disagreement among different authors 
regarding number and composition of families of cockroaches. 
Princis (1960, 1964, 1965), who recognizes a large number, 
placed Pycnoscelus (or Pycnoscelis) in his own Pycnoscelidae 
(Princis, 1960: 438, 444) (or Pycnoscelididae) and Rhyparobia 
(as Leucophaea) in the Oxyhaloidae of Finot (1897: 214), the 


* Beier (1961: 797) had, without comment, already used ‘‘Pycnoscelidini”’ 
as a tribal name. 


80 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


name of which is based upon the generic name Oxyhaloa 
Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1865. In the latter family, he also 
included, amongst others, the well-known genus Nauphoeta 
Burmeister, 1838; but the earliest family-group name for a 
taxon including this last genus, and therefore other genera in 
the same family group, is ‘“Nauphoetiens” of Saussure (1864: 
145, 185 — see Kevan, 1977: (11); Kevan and Vickery, 1978: 
198n). Although this is a vernacular name, the International 
Code of Zoological Nomenclature recognizes these as being 
“available, so that the name takes precedence over Pan- 
chloridae of Brunner von Wattenwyl (1865: 266). The latter 
is the name of a taxon which also originally included 
Nauphoeta and Rhyparobia (as Leucophaea). Thus the name 
of the family should be Nauphoetidae (cf. Kevan, 1977: 
(11)). It is the opinion of many that Princis has raised too 
many groups of cockroaches to full family status, and I 
believe that all of the genera herein mentioned, Panchlora, 
Pycnoscelus (syn. Leucophaea), Rhyparobia, and Nauphoeta, 
should be regarded as belonging to this one family. Sub- 
families may, however be recognized, Panchlora being assigned 
to the subfamily Panchloridae (family Panchloridae of Brun- 
ner von Wattenwyl, 1865, sensu Princis, 1960), Pycnoscelus 
to the subfamily Pycnoscelinae (Pycnoscelidae of Princis, 
1960) and the others to the subfamily Nauphoetinae 
(Nauphoetiens of Saussure, 1864) in a restricted sense). 

4. In conclusion, it might be appropriate to comment 
upon the spelling or the ordinal name “Dictuoptera”’ used in 
the title of this paper, although this has been explained pre- 
viously (e.g., by Kevan, 1977: (9), and in Kevan and Vickery, 
1978: 198n) and recently used elsewhere several times (e.g. by 
Kevan, 1978: 34). 

The usual spelling or the ordinal name in recent years has 
been ‘‘Dictyoptera”’. This is, however, techically incorrect, for, 
although the transliteration of the Greek ‘‘ypsilon’’ into the 
Roman alphabet is acceptable using either “‘y” or ‘‘u’’ (the 
latter the less usual), the first use of the group name as applied 
to cockroaches was, in fact, as “‘Dictuoptera’’ (Leach, 1815: 
60, 76, 120 — mantids were excluded on p. 119). The spelling 
“Dictyoptera”’ had been used earlier by [Schellenberg and 
Clairville] (1798: 44, 45)* but the group there named was 
equivalent to the old ‘“‘Neuroptera”, sensu lato, of Linnaeus 
(1758) and, included no insect now generally understood by 
the term. “Dictyoptera’’, in earlier times, was used for either 
group, though by different authors,® and at least as late as 
1884 (in modified form, up to 1905) for ‘“‘Neuroptera’’. It is 
therefore logical (there being no rule in the matter which one 
may follow) to return to the original spelling, ‘““Dictuoptera”’ if 
the name is to be used for cockroaches and their relatives, 
and not for the groups to which “Dictyoptera” was first 
applied. 

*The anonymous texts, both German and French, would now appear to 
Tee largely, if not wholly, those of Clairville alone (Méquignon, 


MADEIRA AND SURINAM COCKROACHES 81 


It should, however, be noted that the termites (long con- 
sidered to constitute a separate order, Isoptera) are now 
regarded by various authors, including the writer, as having 
only subordinal status — as Termitodea — within the order 
that includes cockroaches (Blattodea), and mantids (Manto- 
dea), and that these were, in effect, though a minority group 
not mentioned by name covered by the original [Schellenberg 
and Clairville] name Dictyoptera. Dictuoptera, on the other 
hand, originally included only cockroaches, although in a 
later usage, the author of the name, Leach (1817: 58) by 
definition, though without actually naming either group, ex- 
tended its meaning to cover mantids also, but not termites. 
Thus, by severely limiting [Schellenberg and Clairville’s] Dic- 
tyoptera to mean only termites — just as DeGeer’s Dermaptera 
was long ago® severely restricted by Kirby (1813) to mean only 
earwigs — one could argue for Dictyoptera as the name of 
the order including cockroaches, mantids and termites, but 
insist on Dictuoptera if the last of these is given independent 
ordinal status! Brullé (1831), when he dismembered the old 
group “‘Neuroptera’’, used the name Dictyoptéres for what are 
now generally known as the orders Odonata, Ephemeroptera 
and Plecoptera, definitely excluding the termites by placing 
them in a separate order, “‘Isoptéres”. Dictyoptera thus effec- 
tively became a junior synonym of the oldest of the above, 
Odonata of Fabricius, 1792, and unavailable for any Dictuop- 
tera. 


References 


Beier, M., 1961. Blattopteroidea: Blattodea. Bronn’s KI. Ord. Tierreich, 
5 (3) [6 (4)]: 587-848. 

Brullé, A., 1831. Coup d’oeil sur l’entomologie de la Morée. Ann. Sci. 
nat. 23: 244-267. 

Brunner de [= von] Wattenwyl, C., 1865. Nouveau systéme des 
Blattaires. Soc. Zool. Bot. Vienne: XII + 426 pp. + XIII pl. 
Caudell, A. N., 1903. Notes on the Orthoptera of Bermuda with the 
description of a new species. Proc. ent. Soc. Wash. 5: 239-331. 
Fabricius, J. C., 1781. Species Insectorum exhibentes eorum differentias 

Deer: synonyma auctorum .. . Bohn, Hamburg, KOln. 1: 
pp. 

Finot, P. A. P., 1897. Catalogue des Orthoptéres de l’Amérique Meri- 
dionale décrits jusqu’a jour 1896. Act. Soc. sci. Chil. 7: 169-220. 
Gurney, A. B., 1953. Distribution, general bionomics and recognition 

characters of two cockroaches recently established in the United 
States. Proc. U.S. nat. Mus. 103: 39-56, pl. 2. 
Hebard, M., 1917. The Blattidae of North America north of the 
Mexican boundary. Mem. ent. Soc. Amer. 2: 284 + vi pp. + X pl. 
Kevan, D. K., McE., 1977. Suprafamilial classification of ‘‘orthopteroid”’ 
and related insects; a draft scheme for discussion and consideration. 
Mem. Lyman ent. Mus. & Res. Lab. 4: Appendix (1)-(26). 
°*MacLeay (1821: 367, 372) used both spellings in Leach’s sense (“‘Dic- 
typotera”’ the first time), though he did not recognise the group (or 
the Dermaptera) as deserving independent status from the Orthopera. 
It might also be noted that a curious misprint ‘‘Dietroptera’’, referring 
in fact to Leach’s Dicuoptera, appears on pl. CCCXXXI of Brewster’s 
Edinburgh Encyclopaedia, Vol. 12 [1817], the first of three plates 
accompanying a little-known, anonymous article on pp. 155-164 (pre- 
sumably by Leach) entitled “Insects”, but which, apart from the plates 
(which illustrate various orders), treats exclusively of Diptera. 


82 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/II1/80 


Kevan, D. K., McE., 1978. Proposal to conserve Blatta germanica 
Linnaeus 1767 and to designate it as type-species of Blattella 
Caudell, 1903 (Inseca, Dictuoptera, Blattodea) Z.N. (S.) 680. Bull. 
zoo. Nomencl. 35: 34-39. 

Kevan, D. K., McE. & Vickery, V. R., 1978. The orthopteroid insects of 
the Magdalen Islands with notes from adjacent regions. Ann. ent. 
Soc. Quebec, 22 (1977): 193-204. 

Kirby, W., 1813. Strepsiptera, a new Order of Insects proposed; and the 
Characters of the Order, with those of its Genera, laid down. 
Trans. Iinn. Soc. Lond. 11: 86-122, pl. 9. [Read 1811, whole volume 
1815, hence the confusion of dates in literature.] 

Kirby, W. F., 1904. Orthoptera Euplexoptera, Cursoria et Gressoria. 
(Forficulidae, Hemimeridae, Blattidae, Mantidae, Phasmidae). A 
Synonymic Catalogue of Orthoptera. British Museum, London. 11: 
x + 501 pp. 

Krauss, F., 1892. Systematisches Verzeichnis der canarischen Dermap- 
teren und Orthopteren mit Diagnosen der Neuen Gattungen und 
Arten. Zool. Anz. 15: 163-171. 

Leach, W. E., 1815. Entomology, Brewster, D. (Ed.). The Edinburgh 
Encyclopaedia. Edinburgh. 9 (1): 57-172. 

Leach, W. E., 1817. The Zoological Miscellany. London. 3: 151 pp. + 
5 pl. 

Linnaeus, C. von., 1758. Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae 
secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum  characteribus, 
differentis . . . Salvious. Stockholm. 1: 823 pp. 

MacLeay, W. S., 1821. Horae Entomologicae: or Essays on the 
Annulose Animals. London. 1 (2): i-iv, 161-524. 

Méquignon, A., 1940. Observations sur quelques noms de genre. IV. 
Un point de bibliographie: Clairville ou Schellenberg? Bull. Soc. 
ent. Fr. 45. 16-18. 

Princis, K., 1960. Zur Systematik der Blattarien. Eos, Madr. 36: 
427-449. 

Princis, K., 1963. Blattariae: Revision der siidafrikanischen Blattarien- 
fauna. S. Afr. Anim. Life, Lund. 9: 9-318. 

Princis, K., 1964. Blattariae: Subordo Blaberoidea: Fam.: Panchloridae, 
Gynopeltidae, Derocalymmidae, Perishaeriidae, Pycnoscelididae. 
Orthopterorum Catalogus. Junk, ’s-Gravenhage. 6: 173-281. 

Princis, K., 1965. Blattariae: Subordo Blaberoidea: Fam. Oxyhaloidae, 
Panesthiidae, Cryptocercidae, Chorisoneurida, Oulopterygidae, Dip- 
lopteridae, Anaplectidae, Archiblattidae, Nothoblattidae. Orthop- 
terorum Catalogus. Junk, ’s-Gravenhage. 7: 283-400. 

Princis, K., 1967. Corrigenda. Orthopterorum Catalogus. Junk, ’s- 
Gravenhage. 11: 708-710. 

Ragge, D. R., 1965. Grasshoppers, Crickets and Cockroaches of the 
British Isles. Frederick Warne & Co. Ltd., Lonon, New York: 
xii = 299 pp. = BOX pl: 

Rehn, J. A. G., 1903. Studies in American Blattidae. Trans. Amer. ent. 
Soc. 29: 259-290. 

Saussure, H. de, 1864. Orthoptéres de l’Amérique moyenne. Mém. 
serv. Hist. nat. Méx., etc. 3 [livr. II & IV]: iv + 279 pp. + 11 pl. 

[Schellenberg, J. R., & Clairville, J. P. de], 1798. Helvetishche Entomo- 
logie oder Verzichniss der schweizerischen Insekten, nach einer 
neuen Methode geordnet. Mit Beschreibungen und Abbildungen/ 
Entomologie helvetique ou catalogue des Insectes de la Suisse, 
rangés d’aprés une notvelle méthode avec descriptions et figures, 
Orell, Fiissli & Co., Ziirich. 1: 149 + 4 pp. + 16 pl. [Anonymous: 
German on right-hand pages, French on left; German title given 
precedence as it is in larger type.] 

Scudder, S. H., 1863 (Jan.). Materials for a Monograph of the North 
American Orthoptera, including a Catalogue of the known New 
England Species. Boston J. nat. Hist. 7: (Nov. 1862) 408-480. 

Shelford, R., 1908. Studies of the Blattidae VIII, IX. Trans. ent. Soc. 
Lond. 1907: 455-470. 

“W. Kirby, 1813 [not 1815 as sometimes stated]. Trans. Linn. Soc., 

Lond. 7 (1811): 86-87. 


83 


Practical Hints 


Sugaring. — When sugaring tree trunks in a wood without 
clearly defined rides, it is often difficult to follow the line of 
the sugar after dark. When my sugar line turns left, I put 
a sugar dot on the left side of the patch, when right, on right 
side. My last patch has sugar dots on both sides. In similar 
circumstances, see that each patch is visible from the previous 
one, otherwise you will get lost and lose the line. Some moths 
drop off the sugar when the patch is illuminated. Shine the 
light at the base of the trunk or post and raise it slowly. In 
autumn sugaring, always include some twigs and leaves. Quite 
a number of species (7. citrago for instance) will come to 
the twigs and leaves but ignore the trunk. On heather clad 
moorland crossed by stone walls you can pick sizeable 
branches of heather and push them into crevaces in the walls 
and then sugar them. Most of my Highland Hyppa rectilinea 
were obtained in this way. Dicycla oo comes to sugar very 
early in the evening. A long round is a waste of sugar as they 
will all have flown off before the end is reached. Start the 
round when it is still light and use a net. Use a net when you 
are expecting sponsa and promissa or hoping for fraxini. I 
usually carry a killing bottle in my right hand, a torch in my 
left and my net tucked under my left arm (DEMUTH). 

The Northern Drab (Orthosia opima Hubner) seemingly 
prefers more open country than its congeners. Keep an eye 
open in early May on downland and grassy places such as the 
‘roughs’ of golf courses for egg clusters of this species. They 
are laid on old grass inflorescences and are yellowish-white at 
first, becoming purplish-brown and much more difficult to see. 
If you return after dark, you will probably find the moths 
resting on the grass stems; those facing head downwards will 
be ovipositing females (GOATER). 

Larvae of the varied coronet Hadena compta D. & S. may 
be found, occasionally in some numbers, feeding on garden 
Sweet William at night. The caterpillars climb to the tops of 
the flower stems after dark and whilst they are eating small 
holes in the base of the buds, they are easily seen with the 
aid of a torch. Other members of this family are easily found 
on their respective foodplants in the same way (WATKINSON). 

If you want Cleora cinctaria D. & S. (Ringed Carpet), 
choose a dull day in the first fortnight in May and look on 
the small pines which grow in the boggy hollows in the New 
Forest. The males sometimes fly off the trees down into the 
heather where they are easily boxed, but the females stay put. 
In Perthshire, the subspecies bowesi Richardson occurs some- 
what later, and rests on birches, rocks and sometimes on fence 
posts and telegraph poles (GOATER). 

The end of May is a good time to try for cocoons of the 
Welsh Clearwing (Conopia scoliaeformis Borkhausen). Take 
with you a mallet and wide chisel, and a wire brush. Search 


84 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/III/80 


the ancient birches until you find caked reddish-brown frass 
amongst the moss which clothes the trees, or in the bark 
crevices; then brush away until, suddenly, a round hole is 
revealed where the ‘cap’ has been removed. Then, with mallet 
and chisel, cut out a square of bark containing the pupa, which 
is in a, sausage-shaped cocoon made of silk and finely chewed 
fragments of bark. Keep in a roomy box on damp Sphagnum 
moss (beware of ants!) and the moths will emerge within a 
month. (GOATER). 

To set Micros successfully careful and accurate pinning 
is absolutely essential. Place the insect, face down, on a clean, 
folded linen handkerchief. Use a watchmaker’s eye-glass to 
position the pin exactly in the centre of the thorax and press 
in so that the point emerges on the centre-line of the insect 
between the second pair of legs. If necessary, hold the insect 
steady by light pressure from a setting-needle applied trans- 
versely across the base of the wings. If unsuccessful, withdraw 
the pin and try again. When satisfied, press the pin deep into 
a piece of moulded polystyrene such as is used for packing. 
This will drive the insect to the top of the pin and make it 
possible to manipulate legs, antennae, etc. Position the pin 
centrally in the groove of the setting-board and gently press 
the insect downwards until the shoulders of the wings are level 
with the surface of the board. If the process has been carried 
out correctly, the insect will often ‘set itself’. Pins? Headless 
stainless steel. 0.0124 in x 15 mm is the most useful size for 
Tortrices; 0.0100 in x 15 mm for small Tineids and 0.0166 in 
x 20 mm for Pyralids (W. A. C. CARTER). 

In late May and early June, flowers of apple may be found 
to contain silken spinnings mixed with frass. Often these 
spinnings cause the brown and wilted petals, which otherwise 
would have fallen, to remain attached to the flower stalks, 
and these may be quite noticable if surrounding flowers have 
already dropped. These spinnings may be collected and if kept 
for two or three weeks, a series of the pretty black and white 
Argyresthia arcella (= cornella Fabr.) may be bred (WAt- 
KINSON). 

Ancylis comptana Frolich flies in abundance on chalk 
downs in May; with it you may find the larger, greyer males 
of Griselda stagnana D. & S. Females of the latter species are 
very different-looking insects, with heavier bodies and smaller, 
more marbled wing, and are less inclined to fly. In late May, 
Ancylis unculana Haworth can be tapped from Rhamnus 
bushes growing on the downs (GOATER). 

If the bark of cherry, apple and pear trees in gardens is 
carefully searched on sunny mornings in mid May, the adults 
of the tortricid Enarmonia formosana Scop. may be found. 
The larvae feed in the bark, and frass and empty pupa cases 
protruding from the bark betray their presence. On cherry 
trunks, accumulations of resin extruded from the bark may 
also be the result of larval feeding (WATKINSON). 

A few dead leaves at the end of an apple shoot may 


PRACTICAL HINTS/NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 85 


indicate the presence of a larva of Blastodacna atra Haw. in 
the shoot. The larva kills the leading bud and usually a few 
surrounding leaves die. Carefully pull away the dead central 
bud to check if a larva or pupa is present. The feeding place 
is conspicuous by mid-May but probably it is easier to note 
the spot and collect in early June. It is a local species. My 
specimens have come from small and/or unhealthy trees. (J. 
ROCHE). 

Larvae of the plume moth Platyptilia pallidactyla Haw. 
can be found feeding on Achillea in early May. The fairly 
large larva tunnels into the growing tip of the larger shoots 
stunting them and often causing the ends to show swelling 
and signs of frass (WATKINSON). 

The Burren form of Anania funebris (Strom) has larger 
white markings than the English form. On the morning of 
May 3lst 1978, we found it flying low amongst herbage and 
difficult to catch, but in the early evening it flew high and 
fast and was more easily netted (GOATER). 

Cocoons of the extremely pretty tortricid Pammene regi- 
ana Zell. may usually be readily found on Sycamore trunks in 
mid-May. The larvae spin their cocoons between the trunk 
and the large flakes of loose bark so often found at the base 
of these trees, and they hibernate until late spring. If the 
cocoons are collected earlier in the year, the larvae often die 
before pupation (WATKINSON). 


Notes and Observations 


CALLIMORPHA DOMINULA (L.): SCARLET TIGER IN SOUTH 
CumsriA. — Early in May this year (1979) I received a tele- 
phone call from a lady (Mrs. X) living a few miles from Kendal 
reporting that she had a large number of caterpillars feeding 
in her garden, and in neighbouring gardens, on borage. The 
larvae were destroying all the plants and then going on to feed 
on other low growing plants. She then informed me that 
she believed these larvae to be those of the Scarlet Tiger 
moth. I was frankly sceptical of this diagnosis. In addition to 
th present larval invasion she reported that in 1978 she had 
seen imagines of the moth flying in the vicinity. 

I visited her garden and the immediate environs and there, 
sure enough, were many larvae of C. dominula in their 
penultimate instar. All the borage was eaten to the stalks 
and many larvae were on other low growing plants, including 
nettle. I collected ten larvae and, not having any borage 
available in my garden, fed them on nettle. During the first 
ten days of July I bred out nine specimens of C. dominula of 
typical facies. 

The next question coming to mind was whence did they 
come? Near Mrs. X’s garden was a market garden establish- 
ment — which also had its share of larvae. This particular 
firm deals mainly in vegetables, not flowers, and no record of 
importing any plants on which the dominula might have come. 


86 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


So the mystery remains. As is well known the normal distri- 
bution of C. dominula is southern so one supposes that the 
present flourishing colony must in some way have been arti- 
ficially introduced. 

With her concurrence I have not named the original 
finder of the colony in view of the fact that there are very 
few of the same name in the telephone directory and she 
could be readily located. We agree that the exact location of 
the colony should not at present be published. I am most 
grateful to Mrs. X for drawing my attention to this colony 
and allowing me to take some larvae for final confirmation 
of the record. Specimens of the moth have been deposited 
in Kendal Museum. — Dr. NEVILLE L.BirKeTT, Kendal Wood, 
New Hutton, near Kendal, Cumbria. 

HAZARDS OF BUTTERFLY COLLECTING — NIGERIA. — In 
the tropical forest zone of West Africa you often come across 
columns of driver ants traversing the road or track on which 
you walk. They are a fascinating spectacle; weaved at a 
distance the column — about the width of a hand — looks 
like a never ending flow of treacle. The flanks are guarded by 
a line of ferocious soldiers with manibles so large that they 
ought to be able to snap a match in two. Disappointingly they 
cannot; I tried. When the flank is disturbed, the soldiers 
bunch at the threatened spot and are joined by colleagues who 
are hurrying through the mass of workers in order to up 
resume duty at the téte of the column. Soon a formidable 
defensive bulge is formed. 

From time to time the entire column halts and the ants 
fan out in all directions to forage, covering an area of half a 
square kilometre. They feed avidly on anything, including 
passing entomologists. Ants are everywhere and the entomolo- 
gist who manages to blunder into their foraging area will find 
that he may be in the right place but at the decidely wrong 
time. By the time he makes this discovery he will already be 
covered by hundreds of ants. There is only one course of 
action; run for cover, or rather for open ground. Any attempt 
to get rid of the ants on the spot will only make matters 
worse. A quick sprint of about four hundred metres is by 
painful experience about right. Then strip, making no obeisance 
to false modesty. Finally, pick off individually each ant, taking 
care to include the head since otherwise the jaws will lock like 
a clamp. There are persistent rumours that the heads of driver 
ants have been used to suture operation scars, but I have not 
been able to verify them. 

The best places in which to strip in a tropical forest tend 
to be public roads, so the question of modesty — false or 
otherwise — is a very real one. Gaggles of Yoruba matrons 
on their way to market have witnessed several of my stripping 
excercises. Generally speaking they are quite good about it. 
There are no other circumstances under which I have been 
able to get a free treat of delicious fruit off market mammys in 
that part of the world. But whenever I see a column of driver 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 87 


ants, the echo of delighted laughter and much slapping of 


ample thighs returns. — TORBEN B. LaRSEN, 23 Jackson’s 
Lane, Highgate, London, N.6. 
EARLY SIGHTING OF A RED ADMIRAL. — On returning to 


my home near Lymington for lunch, on the 24th January at 
13.05 hrs., I was pleased to see a Red Admiral resting on the 
wall of my bungalow and basking in the afternoon sun. This 
was one of several days when the sun shone strongly in an 
otherwise bleak month. — ALEC Harmer, ‘‘Covertside’’, Sway 
Road, Lymington, Hants. 6.11.80. 

THE SMALL TORTOISESHELL IN FLIGHT IN FEBRUARY. — I 
wish to report the sighting of one specimen of A glais urticae L. 
in flight along the base of chalk cliffs at the eastern end of 
Pegwell Bay, on Sunday 17th February, sex not determined. 
At the time of 11.30 a.m., weather unusually warm for time 
of year, very still with almost cloudless sky. This represents 
the earliest sighting of this species that I can remember. 
Previous years’ records of mine show around 24th March as 
the usual time for A. urticae to appear on the wing. — 
CHRISTOPHER J. RANDALL, ““Driftwood’’, The Old Coastguards, 
Pegwell Bay, Ramsgate, Kent CT11 ONH. 18.11.80. 

A THIRD RECORD OF EURRHYPARA PERLUCIDALIS (HBN.) 
FOR KENT. — A worn specimen of this Pyralid which was 
present in my m.v. moth trap at Newington, near Sittingbourne 
on the morning of 15th July 1979 would appear to be the third 
record of this local moth for the county. The other two 
reported captures were from Ham Fen, near Deal in 1960 
(Ent. Rec., 72: 173) and Aylesford in 1976 (Ent. Rec., 89: 
264). — V. D. Taytor, 40 Bull Lane, Newington, Kent. 

BEHAVIOUR OF PAINTED LADY (CYNTHIA CARDUI L.). — 
l discovered a Painted Lady roosting on the edge of a wood 
during the later part of November 1979. A series of observa- 
tions revealed that this butterfly, on suitable days, regularly 
flew direct to a field about one third of a mile away to feed on 
dandelions. The flight was made after a brief bask in mid- 
morning, and involved crossing two other fields over the brow 
of a hill. The last two dates of observation were December 3rd 
and 6th after which the weather was unsuitable. The autumn 
was unusually mild, two female Meadow Browns (Maniola 
jurtina L.) being seen by me in the same field, feeding on dan- 
delions, on October 31st. Both were in quite fair condition 
and would certainly have survived into November. — A. 
ARCHER-Lock, 4 Glenwood Road, Mannamead, Plymouth, 
Devon. 

CALOPTILIA SEMIFASCIA (HAWORTH) IN KENT. — On the 
evening of 25th August 1979, I was pleased to beat a single 
adult C. semifascia Haw. from a gigantic Field Maple on the 
fringe of Steps Hill Wood, Stockbury; a further visit two days 
later produced an additional specimen. Although generally 
locally common, this is believed to be the first recorded occur- 
rence in Kent. — N. F. Hrat, Fosters, Detling Hill, Nr. Maid- 
stone, Kent. 


88 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/III/80 


Current Literature 


A Dipterist’s Handbook. Editors, Alan Stubbs and Peter 
Chandler; General Editor, Peter W. Cribb. The Amateur 
Entomologist, vol. 15, 1978. 83 ins x 5 ins, paper covers, 
255 pp. Available from A.E.S. Publications Agent, 129 
Franciscan Road, Tooting, London, S.W.17. Price £6 
plus postage. 

Apart from the popular introductory volume by Colyer 
and Hammond, which in fact it compliments, the present Hand- 
book is the most comprehensive publication to date concerned 
with our Diptera. The emphasis throughout is on field-work 
and ecology; systematics and identification (other than of 
larval types) are outside its scope. The labours of at least 26 
authors have gone to form it — all either active field-workers 
or museum specialists, or both. Some idea of the ground 
covered can be given by the chapter contents, each followed 
by the number of pages taken up (excluding preface and 
introduction): — Collecting, recording, and related topics (well 
illustrated), 37; immature stages, their collection and preserva- 
tion, family key to larvae (with plenty of good figures), 26; 
some micro-habitats (dead wood, sap-runs, dung, carrion, mud, 
water), 48; major habitats (12 types, with glossary of terms), 
48; associations with other animals and micro-organisms (over 
30 types of hosts covered), 56; plant associations (from fungi 
to higher plants, and flower visitors), 37; behaviour and adapta- 
tion (with figures — migration, mimicry, etc.), 12; the fly in 
time (geological, and day/night rhythms), 5. There are, for 
instance, most useful lists of all known higher-plant and fungal 
hosts of British Diptera (the latter runnning to nearly 5 pages 
of small type); and each chapter ends with a list of works for 
further reading. 

Print, paper, and binding are good, but the practice adop- 
ted of not indenting paragraphs (a concession to economy?) 
is far from easy on the eye, especially if the preceding one 
happens to end with a nearly complete line. Misprints are 
many — well over 90 — but fortunately a list of the chief ones 
is provided. We gather that this excessive number was gene- 
rated by undue pressure in meeting publication deadlines; it 
seems a pity that there cannot be more flexibility in such 
matters, whereby these blemishes could have been avoided. 
The list of contents is detailed enough to compensate in fair 
measure for the lack of an index. 

Although, for reasons of economy, the authors were 
obliged to condense and select more drastically than they 
might have wished, the result is a work that cannot fail to be 
of the utmost use to both amateurs and professionals, genera- 
lists and specialists alike. It reflects great credit on all partici- 
pants, who have rendered a valuable service to the study of 
British Diptera. — A.A.A. 


EXCHANGES AND WANTS 


For Sale— Run of the Record from July 1951 to December 1972. Clip- 
bound using “‘Veteran Simplex’’ system in 22 volumes. Complete, in perfect 
condition. £80.— Paul Sokoloff, 4 Steep Close, Orpington, Kent. Farn- 
borough 59034. 


Wanted for research collection: Reared Parasitic Hymenoptera. — Please 
contact Dr. M. R. Shaw, Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh EH] 1JF. 


For Sale —Barrett’s British Lepidoptera Illustrated. 11 Vols. complete. 
Offers over £500. — Tel. 01-360 6195. 


Wanted — Records of insects feeding on the leaves, stems and flowers of 
buddleia (Buddleia davidii) and records of insects visiting and feeding from 
the flowers. This introduced shrub is rapidly developing an associated insect 
fauna. The attraction of its flowers to butterflies is well-known, and I not 
only want to build up a picture of flower visitors but also a record of 
species feeding on other parts of the plant, particularly the leaves. Please 
include locality, date and the names of the species of insects. — Dr. D. F. 
Owen, 66 Scraptoft Lane, Leicester LES 1HU. 


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CONTENTS 


Notes on Breeding the Marbled White Butterfly: Melanargia gala- 
thea L. ab.craskei Tubbs. R. REVELS 

Coleophora abicosta (Haworth, 1828) (Lep.: Coleophoridae) — an 
Anomalous Life-History for a Coleophorid Larva. Dr. K. P. 
BLAND 

The Immigration of Lepidoptera to the British Isles in 1978: A 
Suplementary Note. R. F. BRETHERTON and J. M. CHAL- 
MERS-HUNT 

The Interaction of Predators and “Eyespot Butterflies” Feeding on 
Rotting Fruits and Soupy Fungi in Tropical Forests. Variations 
on a Theme Developed by the Muyshondts and Arthur M. 
Shapiro. Dr. A. M. YOUNG 

Biston herefordi (@ betularia x @ strataria): The H. B. D. Kettle- 
well 1974 Hybrids, a Report. Sir CYRIL CLARKE, K.B.E., 
NED EeRes: 


Blue Moons and Brimstones. Lt. Col. C. F. COWAN 
Audio Mimicry in Moths? A. C. MORTON, B.Sc. 


Names involving the Madeira and Surinam Cockroaches (Dictu- 
optera, Blattodea, Nauphotidae). Professor D. KEITH McE. 
KEVAN 


Practical Hints 
Notes and Observations: 
The Pupation Requirements of Ectoedemia argentipedella (Zel- 
ler). Lt. Col. A. M. EMMET 


Prterostichus angustatus (Dft.) (Col.: Carabidae) in Angus: 
First Scottish Record. A. GARSIDE sia is 


Selection of Pers of eens | caelatus patna Dr RG: 
FENNAH 


Callimorpha dominula L.: Scarlet ek in South Cumbria Dr. 
NOL; BIRKERT : 


Hazards of Butterfly Collecting — Nigenia: T. B. LARSEN 
Early Sighting of a Red Admiral. A. HARMER 


The Small Tortoiseshell in Flight in February. C. J. RAN- 
DALL 


A Third Record of Eurrhypara perlucidalis Hbn. for Kent. 
Mrs. V. D. TAYLOR 


Behaviour of Painted Lady (Cynthia cardui L.). A. ARCHER- 
LOCK 


Caloptilia semifascia Haworth in Kent. N. F. HEAL 


Current Literature 


57 


61 


62 


63 


69 


74 


76 


85 
86 


87 


87 


87 


87 
87 
88 


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NEVILLE BIRKETT, M.A., M.B. C. A. COLLINGWOOD, B.SC., F.R.E.S. a4 
S. N. A. JACOBS, F.R.E.S. J.HEATH, F.R.E.S., F.L.S. o 


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89 


The Immigration of Lepidoptera to the 
British Isles in 1979 


By R. F. BreTHerTON! and J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT” 


The year 1979 was generally poor for immigrants. Most 
of the common species were more numerous than in 1978, 
although none except Pieris brassicae L. were unusually 
abundant; but the scarcer ones were fewer both in species 
and numbers, and no spectacular invasions took place. There 
were, however, some notable single records: of Notodonta 
torva Hiibner at Eastbourne, East Sussex, after the night of 
May 29/30, by M. Hadley (Ent. Rec. 91: 145); of Syngrapha 
circumflexa at Sway, South Hampshire, on July 29th by Rear 
Admiral A. D. Torlesse (Ent. Rec. 92: 28), and of Hyles 
euphorbiae L. at Brentwood, South Essex, on the same night, 
by P. J. Wansell; and, among the butterflies of Danaus 
plexippus L. sighted and photographed in a garden at Yaver- 
land, Isle of Wight on July 7th by J. Churcher. There were 
also four captures of Chrysodeixis chalcites Esp: between 
October 2nd and 10th (Ent. Rec. 91: 269), the Ministry of 
Agriculture have informed us that no imported larvae of this 
species were intercepted in 1979. But only 20 of the scarcer 
certainly immigrant species were noted in 1979, as compared 
with 27 in 1978 and over 40 in the exceptional season of 1976. 
One species, Clostera anachoreta D. & S. which reported 
singly as in immigrant in 1978, appears to have gained at 
least a temporary foothold in East Kent in 1979 (Ent. Rec. 
91: 209). 

Records have come directly or indirectly from some 75 
recorders. Most per force had to concentrate on the com- 
moner species; but their information about dates and unusual 
numbers is valuable both for understanding these species and 
for its bearing on the occurrence of others. Thus, the single 
records of N. torva, S. circumflexa and H. euphorbiae, 
already referred to, might well have been supposed to rep- 
resent accidental introductions or escapes; but the former 
has strong local support from early records of Autographa 
gamma L. and Agrotis ipsilon Hufn. on the same and adjacent 
nights; and for the second and third the coincidence of date 
combined with the influx of 200 A. gamma and a few 
Nomophila noctuella D. & S. in East Sussex and of a 
Mythimna vitellina Hiibner in West Sussex, on July 27/28, 
gives a high probability that both these rarities were natural 
immigrants. There is some reason to believe that they may 
have originated in the Canary Islands. 

The winds of this cold, wet season may have been as 
deterrent to immigrants as to residents. There are traces of 
a small immigration in April of Vanessa atalanta L. (Ent. 
Rec. 91: 157) and A. ipsilon in Cornwall and Devon, and 


‘Folly Hill, Birtley Green, Bramley, Guildford, Surrey GUS OLE. 
*1 Hardcourts Close, West Wickham, Kent. 


90 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


early records of Phlogophora meticulosa there may have been 
of immigrants. Later, until late July, unfavorable north 
westerly air streams predominated; these were, indeed, fre- 
quently broken for a day or two, but hardly for long enough 
to allow long distance migrants to reach the British Isles. 
There were longer spells of south west or south winds over 
South England only from May 13th to 17th, May 29th to 
June 5th, July 3rd to 8th, and from July 26th into early 
August. Through August and September, though there was 
more southerly and westerly wind, conditions remained very 
unsettled, and only in the first half of October were these 
winds prolonged, with a further short spell at the end of the 
month and into early November. As in 1978, October was 
clearly the best month; but even then the immigrations were 
less clear cut, smaller, and less varied in content and probably 
in origin. The only trace during the season of movement 
from the east across the North Sea, was provided by records 
of three Eurois occulta L. in east Lincolnshire, accompanied 
by 150 A. gamma and some Agrius convolvuli L., and by two 
Nymphalis antiopa L., one at Peterborough, between 27th 
August and September Ist, and one at Shoreham, Kent, on 
26th July. 


It is clear that, with certain exceptions, most of the 
scarce migrants and the large influxes of the commoner ones 
came during these periods of favourable wind; exact corre- 
spondence is not to be expected, because immigrants may be 
recorded some days after their actual arrival. The associations 
of species reported in several of these periods is shown 
below: — 


May 29th/June 5th N. noctuella; V. atalanta; O. obsti- 
pata; N. torva (1); A. ipsilon, A. 
gamma, M. stellatarum (1) 


July 3rd/8th C. cardui, D. plexippus, M.. stella- 
tarum, A. gamma 
July 26th/30th H. euphorbiae (1); M. vitellina (1); 


S. circumflexa (1); A. gamma (200); 
N. noctuella; N. antiopa (1) 
August 27th/Sept. Ist N. antiopa (1), A. convolvuli, E. 
occulta, A. gamma 
nubilalis (5), R. sacraria (19); 
convolvuli (6); A. atropos (1); 
. albipuncta (7); M. vitellina (1); 
atalanta; C. cardui; O. croceus; 
. Ipsilon. 
nubilalis (5); R. sacraria (19); O. 
obstipata (16); AH. fasciaria (1); 
convolvuli (6); A. atropos (1); 
quadra (1); M. albipuncta (3); 
vitellina (23); M. unipuncta (7); 
armigera (1); S. littoralis (1); C. 
chalcites (4): V. atalanta; U. fer- 


Sept. 5th/9th 


COaNSARO 


Sept. 30th/Oct. 13th 


wean 


IMMIGRATION OF LEPIDOPTERA TO BRITISH ISLES 1979 91 


rugalis; P. saucia; A. gamma; N. 
noctuella; A. ipsilon. 
Oct. 17th/19th O. obstipata (3); R. sacraria (3); M. 
unipuncta (3); H. armigera (2). 
Oct. 30th/Nov. 3rd O. obstipata (1); M. vitellina (2); 
M. unipuncta (4). 

Among the usually common immigrant butterflies P. 
brassicae 1. was dominant. The first wave of immigrants 
was seen by several observers to arrive on the coast of East 
Sussex from June 9th to 12th, in local southerly breezes. 
Thence they spread rapidly inland and northwards, causing 
local plagues of larvae in July. Specimens examined in Surrey 
appeared to be of the ordinary north European form. The 
abundance which recurred in August and later was no doubt 
partly due to local breeding from the June invasion or by 
ordinary residents; but probable immigrants were again noted 
in Sussex on August 10th, and at Wadebridge, North 
Cornwall, during the week August 3rd/10th clouds of P. 
brassicae were seen moving north over the Bristol Channel. 
On August 11th Pieris species, of which 80% were thought 
to be P. brassicae, were estimated to number some 30,000 
in a small field in Gower on the opposite coast. P. rapae 
and P. napi were also present, but it is not clear whether 
these were also immigrants. At Spurn Head, S. E. Yorks, on 
August 10th, about 2,400 ‘whites’ (both brassicae and rapae) 
flew south in a two hour period around mid-day, and on 
August 11th for several hours a heavy southerly passage of 
butterflies involving ‘whites’ at the rate of 1,500 per hour. 
It is noteworthy that the flight direction is the opposite to 
that of the Sussex and N. Devon/Glamorgan reports of 
nearly the same date. 

Colias croceus Fourc. was again very scarce, with only 
a few scattered reports, including one in Monmouth district 
on 16th June, but occurrence was mostly of single specimens, 
along the south coast in August and September and in a 
curious penetration apparently from Hampshire through 
North Wiltshire to Warwickshire and South Shropshire (Ent. 
Rec. 91: 283). There were no indications of local breeding. 

Cynthia cardui L. was also scarce, despite a first record 
as far north as North Mull, Argyllshire. There seems to have 
been a small infiux in mid August, when it was reported in 
South Hampshire, Surrey and West Gloucestershire, and 
another in early September on the coast in Lincolnshire and 
Yorkshire. The latest record was of two at Portland, Dorset, 
on 29th September (Ent. Rec. 91: 283). 

V. atalanta L., however, had a fairly good year, beginning 
with immigrants to South Devon in late April and to Sussex 
and Kent in late May, reaching North Mull, Argyllshire by 
July 5th, and becoming widespread from mid August onwards, 
with further Scottish records, in Perthshire, on September 9th 
and October 21st. But it does not seem to have been anywhere 
unusually numerous, and except early in the season associ- 


92 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


ations with other immigrants are not clear. One specimen, 
presumably on migration, was caught in a light trap at 
Longeaton, Notts., on September 10th. 

Of the common immigrant moths, A. gamma was first 
recorded in Westmorland on May 13th and in South East 
Yorkshire on May 18th, and became fairly numerous in the 
south at the end of the month and in June. Immigrations 
continued at frequent intervals from late July onwards, with 
large influxes at Peacehaven, East Sussex on July 27th and 
August 3rd/4th and 12th, and there and elsewhere near the 
south coast through September and October; in East Lincoln- 
shire there were very clear cut invasions on August 28th to 
September 3rd and from September 29th to October 4th. 
A number were widely reported during the mild first week 
of December; but it is not clear whether these were immigrant 
or locally bred. But, despite the coastal abundance, inland 
penetration was weak; traps in both East and West Surrey 
had the lowest totals for many years. 

A. ipsilon, first reported in Cornwall on April 15th and 
elsewhere from mid May onwards, also had a fairly good 
year, though without exceptional abundance. The dispersion 
of the records both in time and place suggested much local 
breeding, the results of which lasted into December. N. 
noctuella though beginning in early June and lasting until 
December Ist, was again much below its usual numbers. 
Udea ferrugalis Hubner was not seen until August 4, but 
was widespread and fairly common in October, with a last 
record on November 23rd. Peridroma saucia Hubner, first 
reported at Hayling Island, S. Hants., on June 2nd, was 
again scarce, though there was a small invasion in October 
and the last was recorded at Muston,, East Yorkshire on 
November 14th. P. meticulosa was common from early April 
onwards, and a sudden influx of 71 was reported at Godalming, 
Surrey, on October Ist; but local breeding certainly contri- 
buted much to its numbers. The diurnal Macroglossa 
stellatarum was again very scarce, only about a dozen being 
recorded between June 6th and September 2nd, of which 
six were in South Devon. It did, however, reach as far north 
as Beetham, Westmorland, on July 7th. 

Full records of the scarcer immigrant species are set out 
in Annexe II. The most notable have already been mentioned. 
Almost all the others were fewer than in 1978, and little 
comment is necessary. 

Rhodometra sacraria L., of which about 50 were 
reported, was probably rather above its annual average. They 
occurred in two well defined periods, August 30th/September 
16th, and October 6th/16th. They were most numerous in 
Sussex, and the only records far inland were at Leigh, South 
Surrey and at Totteridge, South Herts. The interval between 
occurrences was hardly long enough to permit local breeding. 

Orthonama obstipata F., which tends to escape notice, 
with 39 recorded, may also have been above average: but the 


IMMIGRATION OF LEPIDOPTERA TO BRITISH ISLES 1979 93 


pattern was very different. There was a single record, far 
inland, at Caversham, South Oxon, on June 3rd, and other 
singles at Bradwell-on-Sea, South Essex on July 7th, with 
three at Arundel, West Sussex and Peacehaven, East Sussex 
from July 30th/August 4th, and elsewhere in early September; 
there seem to have been larger invasions at the end of that 
month and through October, specimens penetrating north to 
Warwickshire and Yorkshire. But local breeding may have 
contributed to the later records, ,of which the last was at 
Portland on November Ist. 

A. convolvuli, with about 20 recorded, was again scarce. 
An interesting point is that a sizeable invasion seems to have 
reached South Lincolnshire in late August/early September, 
possibly along with North European immigrant species. 

M. vitellina and M. unipuncta Haw., with about 26 and 
31 reported, were both relatively scarce. The latter occurred, 
as in 1978, mainly in late October and in November; and, 
despite the abundance of 1978, there were no traces of it early 
in the season which might have indicated winter survival. We 
still have no clear account of the finding of larvae of these 
species, and the possibility of their establishment, temporary 
or permanent, remains hypothetical. 

Heliothis peltigera D. & S. is shown to have been present 
by the finding of a few larvae in South Devon and West 
Sussex; but no imagines were reported. 

Records of suspected immigrants have been placed in 
Annexe II: — 

Ostrinia nubilalis Hiibner was for long regarded as a 
scarce immigrant, but in the past fifty years it has become 
established over much of South East England, it is, however, 
essentially univoltine here, in June and July, and the dates 
and circumstances of the nine specimens recorded in September 
and October clearly show them to be immigrant. 

Hylaea fasciaria L. A single specimen, of an unusual 
yellowish fawn colour, was trapped by A. J. Dewick at 
Bradwell-on-Sea, South Essex, on October Ist, along with 
examples of M. unipuncta, N. noctuella and U. ferrugalis. 
The species is widely distributed in Britain among Pinus 
sylvestris; but, according to South (1961), it is usually uni- 
voltine in June and July and occurs only sometimes in 
September. Lempke (1953-70) notes in the Netherlands a 
partial second generation in October and November. The 
combination of place, date and associations strongly suggest 
that this specimen was immigrant. 

Lithosia quadra L. The specimen caught at Beaumont- 
cum-Moze on October 10th was clearly immigrant, and may 
be the first record for North Essex. The records from W. 
Cornwall, however, spread over the period July 24th/August 
25th, probably represent resident colonies in that county. 

Meganola albula D. & S. A further example was trapped 
at Bradwell-on-Sea on August 3rd. Single examples of N. 
noctuella were the only certainly immigrant species present 


94 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IV/V/80 
on the previous and succeeding nights, and the possibility 
that the M. albula came from an unknown local colony 
appears to remain open. 

Mythimna l-album L. A single specimen was trapped at 
Peacehaven, East Sussex, on August 4th. The species has 
been spreading steadily eastwards along the south coast; but 
its second generation in England is not usually on the wing 
before mid September. One O. obstipata, many N. noctuella, 
and over 40 A. gamma were recorded on the same night, and 
it is probable that the M. /-album formed part of this immi- 
gration. 

Rhyacia simulans Hufn. Records have been received 
from Wilmington, W. Kent, 6.7; Bradwell-on-Sea, 28.6/4.9 
(6), Little Baddow, 28.7, S. Essex; Little Hallingbury, summer 
1979, N. Essex; St. Neot’s, Hunts, 27.8 (Ent. Rec. 91: 260). 
These have not been included above, as their timing and 
distribution appear strongly to indicate internal spread of 
the species rather than immigration. 

It is hoped to continue the collection and publication 
of immigration records during 1980, and all help from the 
present and new recorders will be very welcome. We are 
still in much need of more information from Cornwall, Devon 
and Somerset, and from Wales and Ireland, especially from 
recorders who make diurnal observations or operate light 
traps regularly through much of the season. 


ANNEXE I 


Allen, R. — per Brown, D.C., 
Marton and Binton, Warwicks.; 
Bideford, N. Devon. 

Appleton, D. — per Else, G. R., 
Wickham, S. Hants. 

Archer-Lock., A. S., S. Devon. 

Baker, B. R., Caversham, Oxon. 

Barton, H. K., Knowle, Bristol 
N. Somerset. 

Bell, R., Sparsholt, N. Hants. 

Bramley, W.G. — per Winter, P., 
Pickering, Yorks. v.c.62. 

Bretherton, R. F., Bramley, 
Surrey; S. Devon. 

Briggs, S., Beetham, Westmorland. 

Braddock, A. — per C. Pratt, 
Nottingham. 

Brotheridge, D. G., N. Wilts. 

Brown, D. C., Coverack, N. 
Cornwall; Studland, Dorset; 
Charlecote, Warwicks. 

Butcher, A. G., Wilmington, 

W. Kent. 

Churcher, J. — per Else, G. R., 
Yaverland, I.o.Wight. 

Clarke, Julian — per Skinner, B., 
Dungeness, E. Kent. 

Coxey, S., Abergele, Denbighshire 


Largen, R. E., Findon, W. Sussex. 
Lees, D. — per Skinner, B., 

Swanage, Dorset; Pagham, W. 

Sussex. 

Lorimer, I., Totteridge, Herts. 
Lowe, R. T., Burton Bradstock, 

Dorset. 

Messenger, D. L., Wormley, 

Surrey. 

Miller, J. R., Perthshire. 
O’Heffernan, H. L., Slapton, 

S. Devon. 

Owen, J., Dymchurch, E. Kent. 
Parsons, M. — per Prati, C., 

Eastbourne and Ninfield, 

E. Sussex. 

Philp, E. G., Burham, E. Kent. 
Plant, C., — per de Worms, 

Plaistow, E. Essex. 

Pilcher, R. E. M., South Thoresby, 

E. Lincs. 

Pittis, Rev. S., Branksome, Dorset. 
Pickering, R., Aldwych Bay, 

W. Sussex; Salisbury, S. Wilts. 
Platts, J., Portland, Dorset. 
Pooles, S. W. — per Pratt, C., 

Eastbourne, E. Sussex. 

Potter, T. A. — per Jackson, S. M., 

East Ayton, Yorks. v.c.62. 


IMMIGRATION OF LEPIDOPTERA TO BRITISH ISLES 1979 95 


Dewick, A. J., Bradwell-on-Sea, 
S. Essex. 

Dyke, R., Malborough, S. Devon. 

Elias, D. O., Gower, Glamorgan. 

Else, G. R., Sandown, I.o.Wight. 

Elvidge, M., Godalming, Surrey. 

Enfield, M. A., Boughton Aluph, 
Wye, etc., E. Kent. 

Fairclough, R., Leigh, Surrey. 

Fisher, J. B., Beaumont-cum-Moze, 
N. Essex. 

Foster, A. P., Mawnan Smith, W. 
Cornwall; Kingsdown, E. Kent. 

Gardner, A., Studland and 
Swanage, Dorset; Charlecote, 
Warwicks. 

Greenwood, J. A. C., Rogate, 

W. Sussex. 

Gandy, M., Cardigan; Islington, 
Kemble, etc. 

Goater, B., W. Cornwall. 

Hadley, M., Eastbourne, E. Sussex. 

Halstead, A. J., Wisley, Surrey. 

Haynes, R. F., Killarney, Co. 
Kerry. 

Heath, J., Shropshire. 

Horton, G. A. N., Usk, 
Monmouth. 

Howard, G., Glen Garry, 

W. Inverness. 

Harman, T. G. Westbere, 
Canterbury, E. Kent. 

Jackson, S. M., Penzance, W. 
Cornwall; Pagham, W. Sussex; 
Selby, Yorks. v.c.61. 

Jagger, J. — per Jackson, S. M., 
Mullion, W. Cornwall. 


Pratt, C., Peacehaven, E. Sussex. 
Pyman, G. A., Little Baddow, 
S. Essex; Studland, Dorset. 
Radford, J. T., Arundel, W. Sussex 
— per Pratt, C. 
Reid, J., Crewkerne, S. Somerset. 
Sadler, E., West Tisted, N. Hants. 
Skinner, B., N. Mull, Argyll; 
Swanage and Portland, Dorset; 
Eastbourne, E. Sussex. 
Smith, P. — per Pyman, G. A., 
Dovercourt, N. Essex. 
Smith, J. J. — per Pyman, G. A., 
Doddinghurst, S. Essex. 
Smith, Mr. and Mrs. F., 
Peterborough, Northants. 
Spence, B. R., Spurn Head, Yorks. 
Sterling, Col. D. H., Winchester, 
S. Hants. 
Stephenson, R., St. Mary Church, 
Glamorgan. 
Strange, Miss T., St. Briavels, 
W. Glos. 
Torlesse, Read Admiral A. D., 
Sway, S. Hants. 
Wanstall, P. J. — per Pyman, 
G. A., Brentwood, S. Essex. 
Watkinson, I., Boughton-u-Blean, 
E. Kent. 
Walters, J., Hayling Is., S. Hants. 
Webber, G. L., N. Wiltshire. 
West, B. K., Sandwich, E. Kent. 
Wild, E. P., Selsdon, Surrey. 
Wildbore, Mrs. D., Shoreham, 
W. Kent. 
Winter, P., Muston and Filey, 
Yorks. v.c.61. 


ANNEXE II 
Records of Scarcer Immigrant Species in 1979 


OSTRINIA NUBILALIS Hiibner (9). E. SUSSEX. Peacehaven, 
5 & 9.9. E. KENT, Boughton-u-Blean, 5.10, 9.10 10.10; Boughton 


Aluph, 9.10, 
females. 


two females. 


S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 


4.10, two 


PALPITA UNIONALIS Hiibner (5). DORSET. Studland, 13.10, 
two (D. C. Brown). E. KENT, Westbere, 25.10. W. SUSSEX, Aldwick 
Bay, 13.10. S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 12.10 

LAMPIDES BOETICUS L. SURREY. Sutton, 15.9, one in house 


(possibly accidental introduction). 


NYMPHALIS ANTIOPA L. W. KENT, Shoreham, 26.7, one in 
garden at 2 p.m. NORTHANTS. Peterborough, 29.8, one in garden in 


warm easterly air. 


DANAUS PLEXIPPUS L. ISLE OF WIGHT. 6.7, Yaverland, one 
photographed on Escallonia in garden. 


RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. 


(c.50). W. CORNWALL. 


Coverack, 30.8; Godolphin, 5.9, five in stubble; Mullion, c.7.9. N. 
DEVON .Bideford, 5.9. DORSET. Studland, 6.10, 13.10, two 16.10, 
two (Brown); Swanage, 10/11.10, male (Skinner); Wareham, 13.10. 
S. HANTS. Hayling Is., 6.9, 11.10. N. HANTS. Sparsholt, 8.10, female, 
ova. W. SUSSEX. Aldwick Bay, 31.8; Rogate, 3.9, 6.9 (males), 3.10, 
6.10, 8.10, two, 15.10 (in all, males 5, females 3). E. SUSSEX. East- 
bourne Cliffs, 1.9 (Parsons), 10.9 (Hadley); Peacehaven, 3.9.; Ninfield, 
11.10, 12.10, two E. KENT. Dymchurch, c.1/3.9; Canterbury, 16.10. 
W. KENT. Bexley, 11.9. SURREY, Leigh, 1.9. HERTS. Totteridge, 
9.10. S. ESSEX. Doddinghurst, 1.9.; Bradwell-on-Sea, 13.9. E. LINCS, 


96 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


South Thoresby, 13.10. YORKS v.c.61. Filey, 1.10, infertile female. 
CARDS. Cardigan, 9.9. 

ORTHONAMA OBSTIPATA F. (38). W. CORNWALL. Mullion, 
c.7-9. DORSET, Swanage, 10.10, female (Skinner); Studland, 13.10 
(Brown); 25.10, two; Portland, 1.11 (Skinner). S. SOMERSET. 
Crewkerne, 28.10, male. S. HANTS. Hayling Is., 8.10, two, 26.10. 
N. HANTS. Sparsholt, 11.10, male. W. SUSSEX. Arundel, 30.7, male, 
1.8 female, Aldwick Bay, 25.9, 30.9, 11.10, male, Pagham, 26.9., E. 
SUSSEX. Peacehaven, 4.8, 7.10, 8.10, 10.10, 19.10, 20.10, 26.10, 27.10 
(eight in all); Ninfield, 12.10, two; Eastbourne, 18.10, male (Skinner). 
E. KENT. Monkton Chalk Pit, Thanet, 29.9, female; SURREY, 
Wormley, 25.9. S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 11.7, 2.9, female, 13.10, 
female; 29.10, female. OXON. Caversham, 3.6. WARWICKS. 
Charlecote, 8.10. YORKS v.c.61. Muston, 14.10, 25.10. DENBIGH- 
SHIRE. In May, one. 

HYLAEA FASCIARIA L. S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 1.10 
(possibly immigrant). 

AGRIUS CONVOLVULI L. (c.24). W. CORNWALL, c.28.8, 
two (Goater). DORSET. Studland, 6.10 (Gardner). E. SUSSEX. 
Peacehaven, 19.9, 16.10; Ninfield, 26.9; Eastbourne, 3.10 (Pooles). 
E. KENT. Dymchurch, c.1.9; Sittingbourne, 8.10, one said to have 
discharged meconium, probably newly emerged; Westbere, 14.10. 
S. ESSEX, Bradwell-on-Sea, 22.8, male, 10.10. E. LINCS. S. Thoresby 
and nearby, 31.8, 1.9., four, possibly six, 13.10. WARWICKS. Marton, 
11.9. YORKS v.c.62. Pickering, 12 or 13.9, in a light cover; East 
Ayton, 2.10, on a door step. WESTMORLAND. Beetham, 21.8. 

ACHERONTIA ATROPOS L. S. WILTS. Salisbury, 13.7, one 
found. E. KENT, Burham, 7.10. S. ESSEX. Plaistow, 7.9, one found 
dead in a garden. 

HYLES EUPHORBIAE L. S. ESSEX. Brentwood, 29.7, a very 
small, dark example, said to have been released after identification. 

NOTODONTA TORVA Hiibner. Eastbourne, 29/30.5, female 
found on wall beside trap in the morning. 

LITHOSIA QUADRA L. N. ESSEX. Beaumont-cum-Moze, 10.10, 
male. W. CORNWALL, Mawnan Smith, 24.7/25.8, twelve in all: 
probably from resident colonies. 

EUROIS OCCULTA L. E. LINCS. South Thoresby, 27.8, 28.8, 
29.8 (three in all). 

MYTHIMNA ALBIPUNCTA (c.18). W. CORNWALL. Mullion, 
c.7.9. DORSET. Portland, 2.9 (Chainey); Studland, 6.10 (Gardner). 
S. HANTS. Hayling Is., 8.9., two, 9.9. W. SUSSEX. Findon, 16.9; 
Rogate, 9.10, male; Aldwick Bay, 14.10. E. SUSSEX, Eastbourne, 9.9 
(Pooles); Peacehaven, 9.9. E. KENT. Dungeness, 15.9, female. 

MEGANOLA ALBULA D. &S. S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 3.8 
(possibly immigrant). 

MYTHIMNA VITELLINA Hibner (26). W. CORNWALL. 
Coverack, 4.8; Mawnan Cliffs, 13.10, female, 16.10, male. DORSET. 
Studland, 6.10 (Brown/Gardner), 25.10, two (Brown), Swanage, 10.10, 
two males (Skinner); 13.10, male (Lees); Burton Bradstock, 31.10, 
male, female. S. HANTS. Hayling Is., 9.10; 10.10, two; Winchester, 
9.10, male. W. SUSSEX Findon, 27.7; Pagham, 23.9, on wall; 
E. SUSSEX. Peacehaven, 27.9, 11.10; Eastbourne, 30.9 (Pooles); 
Ninfield, 30.9, 6.10, 10.10. E. KENT. Boughton-u-Blean, 10.10. 
SURREY. Bramley, 23.10, male. S. ESSEX. Bradwell, 10.10 15.10. 

MYTHIMNA UNIPUNCTA Haw. (31). W. CORNWALL. 
Coverack, 31.8; Mawgan Cliffs, 13.10, female, 16.10, male. S. DEVON. 
Malborough, 24.10. DORSET. Studland, 6.10 (Brown/Gardner), 13.10 
(Brown); Swanage, 24.10, female, 31.10, male (Skinner), 13.10, female 
(Lees); Branksome, 17.10, 19.10. W. SUSSEX. Findon, 17.10; Plaistow, 
26.10. E. SUSSEX. Peacehaven, 30.9, 25/27.10, three; Eastbourne, 
3.11 (Hadley); Ninfield, 22.11. E. KENT. Kingdown, 26.10, male, 
female; Westbere, 30.10. S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 16.10, 25.10, 
29.10, 31.10, 1.11, 7.11. N. ESSEX. Beaumont-cum-Moze, 20.10. 
co. KERRY. Killarney, 13.10, 11, one early, one late. 

MYTHIMNA L-ALBUM. L. E. SUSSEX. Peacehaven, 4.8. 


IMMIGRATION OF LEPIDOPTERA TO BRITISH ISLES 1979 97 


SPODOPTERA EXIGUA. Hiibner. W. CORNWALL, Mawnan 
Smith, 29.11. 

SPODOPTERA LITTORALIS, Bdv. DORSET. Studland, 13.10. 

HELICOVERPA ARMIGERA. Hiibner (3). DORSET. Swanage, 
13.10, female, ova infertile; Wareham, 17.10. N. HANTS. Sparsholt, 
17.8, male. 

HELIOTHIS PELTIGERA D. & S. S. DEVON. Lympstone, 28.9, 
few larvae on marigold. W. SUSSEX. Pagham, 12.10, three larvae 
on S. viscosus. 

CHRYSODEIXIS CHALCITES Esp. (4). N. SOMERSET, Knowle, 
Bristol, 10/11.10, female, ova. GLAMORGAN. 8.!0, St. Mary Church, 
female, ova, moths reared. S. ESSEX. Bradwell-on-Sea, 6/7.10, ova 
infertile. N. ESSEX. Dovercourt, 2.10. 

SYNGRAPHA CIRCUMFLEXA L. S. HANTS. Sway, 29.7. 


DIGITIVALVA PERLEPIDELLA (STAINTON). — As well as 
recording a further Kent North Downs locality for this species 
at Detling Hill, Nr. Maidstone on 3rd June 1979, a freshly 
emerged specimen was also captured at the identical locality 
on 28th August 1979, indicating an occasional second brood. 
—N. F. Heat, Fosters, Detling Hill, Nr. Maidstone, Kent. 


UnusuaL FooD OF ENNOMOS FUSCANTARIA HAWORTH. — 
A full grown larva of this species was found on an isolated 
Horse Chestnut tree in my garden at Lissington, Lincolnshire. 
—G. M. HAGcett. 


POLYGONIA EGEA CRAMER IN Matta. — After 32 years, I 
once more came across this beautiful and rare butterfly in 
Malta, in a different locality from where it was seen and 
recorded for the first time in 1948 (see Entomologist, 81: 150), 
since when it had not been seen again on the island. 

On the Sth February 1980, I went to Wied I]-Ghasel, 
Mosta, to take some pictures of the present pitiful state of this 
valley after the heavy rainfall of the 25th October 1979, when 
over seven inches of water in less than an hour flooded all 
the low-lying areas of the island. What a catastrophe! What a 
transformation! This locality, one of the best habitats of most 
of the species of lepidoptera and of the other orders of insects 
has been turned into a mass of boulders of every size and 
shape. It has been totally denuded of soil and consequently of 
all the existing vegetation except for the ubiquitous Cape 
Sorrel-Oxalis pes-caprae L. which managed to survive on the 
higher slopes of the valley. 

It was after 10 a.m., when amidst this desolation I saw 
this unusual butterfly sipping the white flowers of an almond 
tree, which although shaken by the force of the rushing water 
and bent at an angle of some 60 degrees, still showed a good 
sign of survival. I was hardly two metres way from the butter- 
fly and thus could see it perfectly well and recognise the 
species, having already seen it before on the wing at Wied 
Is-Sewda, Attard in 1948, as well as in Sicily in the spring of 
1970, and in the summer of 1975. — A. VALLETTA, F.R.E.S., 257 
Msida Street, B’Kara, Malta. 


98 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


Notes on the Behaviour of Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing 
Butterfly, Trogonoptera brookiana brookiana 


(Wallace), in Sarawak 
By A. L. PANCHEN, M.A., Ph.D., Sc.D. 


Rajah Brooke’s birdwing was first described by Alfred 
Russell Wallace (1855) from male specimens from the island 
of Borneo, but the habits of the nominate race J. Db. 
brookiana (Wallace) are rather less well known than those 
of T. b. albescens Rothschild from the central States of the 
Malay Peninsula (Wheeler 1940, Corbet & Pendlebury 1956). 
For a period of six weeks during the summer of 1978 I had 
the good fortune to be able to observe the behaviour of this 
species on the island of Borneo, as a member of the Royal 
Geographical Society/Sarawak Government Mulu Expedition. 

The Base Camp of the Mulu Expedition was situated 
near the boundary of the Gunong Mulu National Park, 
Sarawak, Malaysia. A number of the subcamps had also 
been established by the expedition within the park, notably 
marking the ascent of Gunong Mulu (2376m.) the highest 
peak (Camps 1-4), and on the Sungai (River) Melinau (Camp 
5), on which the base camp was also situated. Most obser- 
vations on 7. brookiana were made during the period 15th 
July to 7th August at Base Camp, and from 16th August to 
24th August at Camp 5. 

The National Park is situated in northern Sarawak near 
the Brunei border (Sarawak 4th and 5th Divisions) in primary 
rain forest. The Base Camp, built in the form of a Malaysian 
(“‘dayak’’) long house with several out-buildings for visitors 
and local workers on the expedition, was situated in a small 
clearing bordering the north bank of the river Melinau at 
Long Pala (map reference K322-448: sheet 4/114/16-D.O.S. 
434 (series T735) Malaysia) at an estimated altitude of 65m. 
A helipad had been cleared and a small laboratory erected on 
the opposite bank. Most of the surrounding forest was of 
the alluvial type characteristic of a considerable part of the 
lowland area of the park (Hanbury-Tenison & Jermy, 1979) 
but there were high limestone outcrops (‘‘batus’’?) adjacent 
to the Base Camp clearings on both sides of the river. Males 
of T. brookiana were constantly seen around the long house 
and several females were also seen in the Base Camp area. 

Males were seen on almost every sunny day and could 
be encountered from mid-morning until about 4.30 p.m., but 
were most commonly seen near noon. They were particularly 
attracted by a drainage ditch which ran along the back and 
east side of the house and by a deep pit sunk into the alluvium 
at some distance from the house, later used for the burial 
of rubbish. In both cases they were often to be seen feeding 
on moist areas of mud beside or within the excavations, but 
not usually from actual puddles. The approach of a single 
male was usually by swift direct flight at about a metre from 


*Dept. of Zoology, The University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE] 7RU. 


BEHAVIOUR OF RAJAH BROOKE’S BIRDWING BUTTERFLY 99 


the ground, at least within the clearing. The male flight is 
characteristic, with the costal margins of the forewings 
extended directly laterally forming a straight line, and with 
rapid but shallow wing-beats giving a very bird-like appear- 
ance. While the flight is rapid and very swiftlike there seems 
little ability to manoevre and males are easily caught with 
a large net. When feeding at seepages they flutter at first or 
if apprehensive, but then settle with wings stationary and 
horizontal in the flight posture. Added flavour at the seepage 
was obviously also an attraction and an area on the course 
of the ditch which received used washing-up water was very 
popular, as was a rich muddy area at the opposite end of 
the house. At Camp 5 a urine patch was established in sand 
a little way away from the river’s edge, which proved very 
attractive to several species of Graphium (Papilionidae), 
drinking there at 4.00 p.m. on 23rd August. 


At Base Camp one sometimes saw several males together 
and there seemed to be mutual attraction and interaction 
between them so that one specimen feeding would attract 
one or two others. However, it seems probable that all were 
“visitors” to the long house in the sense that the feeding 
places were not part of any individual’s territory. At Camp 
5, on the other hand, two distinct types of apparently terri- 
torial behaviour of the type referred to by D’Abrera, Doggett 
and Parker (1976) were observed. 


The clearing in which the Camp 5 building was situated 
(map reference K427-565 estimated altitude 150m.) was 
bounded on the north side by the Melinau river, on the east 
and west sides by alluvial forest, and on the south side, 
parallel to and opposite the river, by a high limestone cliff 
face with a shallow rock shelter at its base. This had a sandy 
floor which extended a few feet into the clearing and was 
extensively pitted by nests of the digger wasp, Sphex 
subtruncatus Dahlbon 1843 (I am grateful to Mr. M. C. Day 
of the British Museum (Natural History) for this identifi- 
cation). A solitary male 7. brookiana was to be seen there 
on most days patrolling up and down the length of the rock 
shelter, parallel to the bottom of the cliff face, seldom 
settling and never drinking: there were no patches of 
moisture along its beat. On sunny mornings it was to be seen 
as early as 9.30 a.m. and then intermittently throughout the 
day, often continuing as late as 4.30 or 5.00 p.m., when there 
was no longer any direct sunlight on its beat. 


The second type of territorial behaviour was seen at two 
similar locations. Near Camp 5 there were a number of 
solitary specimens of the small tree /xora javanica in flower. 
It bears bright orange globular inflorescences which are very 
attractive to papilionid butterflies, notably, at Camp 5, P. 
memnon, P. helenus, P. nephelus, P. fuscus, as well as T. 
brookiana. At both locations an /xora bush stood at the edge 
of a dry river bed, each separate river bed forming a flood 


100 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


channel for the Melinau river. The /xora in each case formed 
part of the margin of the forest and was thus flanked by 
much taller forest trees: each /xora appeared to form the 
focus of the territory of a single male 7. brookiana. The 
male had a nesting station on a particular leaf of a particular 
branch on each of the two trees immediately flanking the 
Ixora. At the first location, where the river bed was wider 
and far more open with the /xora on the well-defined east 
facing bank, the leaf stations were at a height of about 2.5m.: 
at the second more enclosed site facing southwards they were 
at about 2.0m. The male in each case would leave one of its 
stations to patrol its beat along the dry river for several 
hundred metres (the precise span of the territory could not 
be observed) or to visit the ‘home’ /xora blooms to feed. 
This behaviour was seen at various times of day, from about 
11.00 a.m. until about 4.00 p.m., but the earliest and latest 
times at which it occured are not known. 

As with may tropical rain forest butterfly species, the 
relative scarcity of female 7. brookiana has been remarked 
on by several authors (Wheeler 1940, Corbet & Pendlebury 
1956). Several females were seen by me at Mulu and I was 
able to see something of their interaction with the males. 
T. brookiana does not have such marked sexual dimorphism 
as birdwings of the genus Ornithoptera, but the white patches 
near the apex of the forewing were very conspicuous in flight 
in the Mulu females, as Wheeler notes for T. 5. albescens. 
The mode of flight of the female is also very different from 
that of the male, with a much greater excursion of the wings 
at each beat, and gives an impression of great power and 
directness. 

At Base Camp females were seen on three occasions 
in similar circumstances. That on the 23rd July at about 
11.00 a.m. was typical. A female was first seen emerging 
from the edge of the forest into the base camp clearing from 
the west at a height of perhaps 12m. It flew down a 
remarkably straight flight path at an angle of about 20°-30° 
to the horizontal, but turned away and was lost to view before 
coming near to the house. On this occasion a single male 
was seen near the house when the female was spotted: 
immediately after she disappeared four males were seen 
together in an apparently agitated state. There was no way 
to establish that their appearance had any connection with 
that of the female, but in the light of later observations 
(below) it seems not improbable. 

Actual courtship behaviour was seen at the second Camp 
5 territorial station noted above. The male occupant of this 
station was a very worn and thus presumably old specimen: 
all other males seen at close quarters in Sarawak looked 
remarkably fresh. At about 2.00 p.m on Tuesday 22nd 
August I was observing this male from a distance of about 
3m. It was feeding on the /xora flowers, moving from one 
inflorescence to another, when a female suddenly appeared 


BEHAVIOUR OF RAJAH BROOKE’S BIRDWING BUTTERFLY 101 


hovering immediately above, having presumably flown down 
from the canopy above and behind. At first the male attempted 
to continue feeding, adopting a stationary but hovering 
posture. The female, however, moved up and down at a 
maximum height of about 30 cm. above him, coming down 
to buffet him from above and then rising again rhythmically. 
Both hovered with outspread wings throughout. The male 
soon abandoned any further attempt to feed, but was very 
much the passive and apparently reluctant partner in the 
courtship throughout. 

As I knew of no published account of breeding and 
rearing 7. brookiana brookiana (the early stages of T. 
brookiana trogon from Sumatra were described by Straatman 
and Nieuwenhuis: 1961) I caught both specimens at this point 
to attempt hand-pairing. Both were taken back to the Camp 
5 building at about 4.30 and after half an hour in a hanging 
cylindrical net pairing cage (diameter 34 cm., height 40 cm.) 
hand-pairing was attempted using the technique described by 
Clarke and Sheppard (1956). This was unsuccessful: the male 
was easily induced to open its claspers and to clasp the 
female, but a firm engagement of the genitalia was not 
achieved. 

After the attempt the male was fed on sugar solution 
on cotton wool in a petri dish, in the open on a sunlit ledge. 
It fed for ten minutes with wings horizontal and motionless 
and was éasily returned to the cage with the female. In the 
cage, however, the male was active, but the female totally 
passive, unless buffeted by the male, until dusk. On the 
following morning, 23rd August, both male and female were 
fed at about 8.00 a.m., the male outside as before, the female 
within the cage. She fed motionless, wings raised to a mutual 
angle of about 130°. She was later observed resting with the 
wings partially or completely raised and closed over the back 
in typical butterfly pose, an attitude never seen by me in any 
male of JT. brookiana. At 8.30 hand pairing was again 
attempted, unsuccessfully and the male released (Mr. Bernard 
D’Abrera has subsequently told me that all attempts, known 
to him, to hand-pair 7. brookiana have failed). The female 
then remained quiescent in the cage in full sunlight until 
nearly 11.00 a.m. when she fluttered again, but was quiet for 
most of the day until fed in the evening. On Thursday 24th 
August she was taken back, still alive and in perfect condition, 
to Base Camp and (inadvertantly) released at the long house, 
whereupon she flew directly and at great speed across the 
river and to the forest canopy. 


References 


Clarke, C. A. & Sheppard, P. M. (1956). Hand-pairing of butterflies. 
Lepid. News 10, 47-53. 

Corbet, A. S. & Pendlebury, H. M. (1956). The Butterflies of the Malay 
Peninsula (2nd Edn.). Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd. 

D’Abrera, B., Doggett, V. & Parker, N. (1976). A new race of Trogo- 
noptera brookiana Wallace (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) from West 
Malaysia. Victoria Nat. 93, 21-24. 


102 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IV/V/80 


Hanbury-Tenison, A. R. & Jermy, A. C. (1979). The RGS Expedition to 
Gunong Mulu, Sarawak, 1977-78. Geogr. J. 145, 175-191. 

Rothschild, W. (1895). A revision of the Papilios of the Eastern 
Hemisphere, exclusive of Africa. Novit. zool. 2, 167-463. 

Straatman, R. & Nieuwenhuis, E. J. (1961). Biology of certain 
Sumatran species of Atrophaneura, Trogonoptera and Troides 
(Lepidoptera, Papilionidae). Tijdschr. Ent. 104 (3), 31-41. 

Wallace, A. R. (1855). Description of a new species of Ornithoptera. 
Ornithoptera brookiana Wallace. Proc. Ent. Soc. Lond. in Trans. 
Ent. Soc. (2) 3, 104-105. 

Wheeler, L. R. (1940). On the alleged rarity of certain Papilio females 
in Malaya. Entomologist 73, 269-274. 


APPARENT COLOUR SELECTIVITY BY PARARGE AEGERIA L. 
WHEN FEEDING AT FLOWERS. — This butterfly is seen feeding 
at flowers in Britain only infrequently. In late August and 
September 1967, and in the four succeeding years, I saw it 
feeding at flowers of copper-coloured single chrysanthemums 
in my garden at Dartford, yet never at those of other colours 
(red, pink and yellow), nor at flowers of Buddleia davidii 
Sedum spectabile (pink), Lychnis coronaria (pink), Michael- 
mas daisies (Aster sp. blue) and single dahlias of various 
colours popular with other species of butterflies. The chrysan- 
themums deteriorated, despite propagation annually by 
cuttings, and were discontinued. 

On September 8th 1979, a specimen of P. aegeria was 
noticed feeding at the golden flowers with a brown centre of 
a cultivar of Rudeckia speciosa in my garden, and again on 
five subsequent days, although perhaps the same specimen 
appeared on all or some of these occasions. Each time the 
butterfly made occasional moves from one clump to another 
paying no attention to other flowers popular with other butter- 
flies, and these included those mentioned above with the 
addition of Inula hookeri (yellow), sweet wivelsfield (Dianthus 
hybrid — pink and red) and a hedge of Lathyrus latifolius 
(pink). 

However, records show that elsewhere P. egeria has been 
observed feeding at flowers of other colours, e.g. blackthorn, 
bramble and buddleia, although the first two examples would 
refer to earlier broods. — B. K. WEstT, 36 Briar Road, Bexley, 
Kent. 


CNAEMIDOPHORUS RHODODACTYLA (DENIS & SCHIFF.) IN 
HampsuHireE. — On 15th July 1977 I disturbed a single speci- 
men of this distinctive moth in Botley Wood, South Hampshire. 
The moth may, perhaps, be overlooked in other localities 
because of its secretive nature; this specimen made no attempt 
to fly when its rose-bush was tapped but dropped straight to the 
ground, and was only noticed because it fell on a patch of bare 
earth. There seem to be no previous Hampshire records of 
this species: Goater in “Butterflies and Moths of Hampshire 
and the Isle of Wight” includes it in square brackets with the 
comment that it was given by Fassnidge as a doubtful record. 
— J. D. Cuapp, College of the Resurrection, Mirfield, West 
Yorkshire. 


103 
Butterflies in Eastern Switzerland 1979 


By Dr. C. J. LUCKENS* 


The three of us, J. M. Chalmers-Hunt, T. W. C. Tolman 
and C. J. Luckens, set off from Calais at about midnight on 
July 3rd and due to some enthusiastic driving by one of the 
trio we were well south of Reims by first light. 

A stop to stretch our legs at around 8.30 a.m. near Vitry 
revealed the first butterflies of the trip, roosting in the dew- 
laden grass — Mellicta athalia Rott., Melanargia galathea L., 
and Polyommatus icarus Rott. Our destination for that 
evening was Pontresina, in the Swiss Engadine. As we had 
also planned to stop at Weesen, east of Zurich en route, we 
had to press on through the hot, sunny morning. 

We approached our intended stop beside the Walensee 
at around 3 p.m., just as the sun became obscured by clouds 
gathering over the hills to the south. This locality was famous 
at one time for the two marshland Maculinea species, that 
in their early larval stages feed on Sanguisorba. We started 
looking for the damp meadows described by numerous authors, 
but things had evidently changed, even since 1960 when R. F. 
Bretherton and the late Baron de Worms were there, and 
most of the ground surrounding the lake consisted of park- 
land and reseeded fields. 

Suddenly, however, J. M. C.-H. spotted a female Maculi- 
nea nausithous Berg. at rest on a Sanguisorba head in a most 
unlikely spot beside the river. This wanderer encouraged us 
to continue to look, and after a considerable search we found 
an area where there were a few fresh Maculinea teleius Berg. 
— mostly at rest. But by this time the weather had broken 
up, it was getting late, and we were forced to bring our di- 
gression to a close. 

In the chill of the evening we pitched camp at Pontresina 
after driving through a minor snowstorm on the Julier Pass, 
but by 8.30 a.m. the following day the weather cleared, and 
we set off for the Val Roseg. 

This superb valley commences opposite Pontresina at 
about 6,000 feet, and extends through alpine pastures and 
scattered woodland to the high peaks surrounding the 
Tschierva and Roseg Glaciers. Horse carriages run from the 
station at Pontresina to the Roseg Hotel in the upper part 
of the valley, but apart from these the whole area is closed 
to wheeled vehicles. On our first day we started walking from 
the lower end towards the Roseg Hotel, and almost immedi- 
ately encountered the dominant Erebia species — E. euryale 
Esp. flying along with the little Coenonympha gardetta de 
Prunn. 

As the temperature rose butterflies became more numer 
ous. Colias phicomone Esp. flew at high speed over the steep 
slopes, accompanying the only slightly slower Boloria pales 
D. & S. and B. napaea Hoffmann. Pieris napi bryoniae Ochs. 


*52 Thorold Road, Bitterne Park, Southampton SO2 4JG. 


104 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IV/V/80 


favoured the marshier spots, and everywhere among woods 
and pastures flitted the two Melitaeas M. phoebe D. & S., 
and M. diamina Lang. The ‘blues’ were mainly represented 
by Cyaniris semiargus Rott. but T.W.C.T., who invariably 
walked further and climbed higher than the other two, found 
several colonies of Albulina orbitulus de Prunn. A small 
marsh with large stands of Gentiana lutea produced single 
specimens of Maculinea alcon D. & S. and Paleochryso- 
phanus hippothoe L., and further on, a stony slope with wild 
geranium growing among the rocks held flourishing colonies 
of Eumedonia eumedon Esp. and Maculinea arion L. Single 
specimens of the latter, however, were found not uncommonly 
all along the valley. Among the skippers two species were 
common — Pyrgus serratulae Ramb. and P. cacaliae Ramb. 
In the woodland clearings however, Carterocephalus palaemon 
Pall. and a few Hesperia comma L. were noted. It seemed 
strange, even allowing for the somewhat flexible flight season 
of the Alps, to find these two skippers flying together when in 
lowland Northern Europe their emergence times are usually 
separated by at least two months. 

One of the species we particularly wanted to find was 
Euphydryas intermedia wolfensbergeri Frey., and in the early 
afternoon J. M. C.-H. and C. J. L. found a clearing where 
one or two of these butterflies were flying — all males and 
in fair condition. After 3.30 p.m. at this altitude insect 
activity seemed to diminish sharply, though some species 
such as the ubiquitous Clossiana euphrosyne L., C. gardetta 
and Erebia pandrose Bork. continued flying until about 4.30. 
On the way back down the valley J.M. C-H. casually picked 
a mint male Pontia callidice Hubn. off a flower head under 
the very nose of C. J. L., who was sitting down contemplating 
his sore feet. 

Continuing fine weather on the following morning en- 
couraged us to investigate the Albula Pass around 8,000 ft. 
above Samedan. As we parked the car at the top of the pass 
we immediately encountered P. callidice once again. ‘Flies 
furiously over difficult ground’’ is the vivid and obviously 
firsthand description of this butterfly’s habits in R. F. 
Bretherton’s Distribution List; we certainly found that this 
held true on the Albula, though several specimens were 
obtained, by energetic running in some cases and sheer good 
fortune in others. A few Oeneis glacialis Moll. were found 
at the top of the pass, with good numbers of the high altitude 
Pyrgus andromedae Wall. and P. cacaliae and, rather 
surprisingly at this level, C. euphrosyne. Absent, however, 
was the much-desired Mellicta asteria Frey. C. J. L. took a 
single male Erebia pluto de Prunn. among scree, but at the 
cost of an unfortunate stumble, which tipped his rucksack 
over his head and showered about seventy pillboxes down the 
mountainside! By this time, as we were descending the north 
side of the pass, the weather had deteriorated disappointingly. 
Beside a stream we found a strong colony of Parnassius 


BUTTERFLIES IN EASTERN SWITZERLAND 1979 105 


phoebus F. however, and during the sporadic spells of sunshine 
the males flew so commonly that it was possible to see six 
or seven without moving from one spot. A few A. orbitulus 
and the odd specimen of Erebia gorge Hubn. and E. pharte 
Hubn. were about in the same place. 

Over this steep and rocky terrain J. M. C-H. proved 
himself a fast and somewhat reckless runner. As soon as 
phoebus or callidice was sighted, he would set off downhill 
at an impressive rate, bounding over the boulders as if they 
did not exist; and though there were a few spectacular falls 
he rarely missed his butterfly! The long tiring trek back to 
the car at the top of the pass was undertaken in persistent 
drizzle. 

July 7th found us once again in the Val Roseg, where 
the weather was very hot in the morning but became cloudier 
by mid-afternoon. Once again present were most of the 
species we had seen two days earlier, but several new Lycaenid 
species turned up as single examples. Among these were fresh 
specimens of Vacciniina optilete Knoch., Aricia artaxerxes 
allous Hbn., Aricia nicias Meig., and Philotes baton Berg. 
Around lunchtime all three of us found ourselves on a rock- 
strewn slope near the floor of the valley about two kilometres 
from Pontresina. C. J. L. netted a small Erebia in long grass, 
which turned out to be a rather worn Erebia flavofasciata 
Heyne — about 2,000 feet too low and almost exactly mid-way 
between the two very local colonies known in this area, i.e. 
the Schaffberg, immediately east of Pontresina, and the 
Tschierva at the head of the Val Roseg. A wanderer of this 
species (which usually confines itself very closely to its chosen 
locality) was surely unlikely so far from either of these known 
colonies, so presumably there mhst be other sites for flavo- 
fasciata on the northern slopes of the Val Roseg. This 
probability seemed to be confirmed an hour or so later, 
when, a further 500 metres along the valley and several 
hundred feet higher up under the cliffs, T. W. C. T. shouted 
to the others that he had seen another flavofasciata at rest 
on stunted alders. Unfortunately it flew over a ravine before 
he could net it. His two colleagues climbed the steep hill 
side in record time, but an extensive search failed to turn up 
any more of this scarce Erebia. 

A small colony of FE. mnestra Hbn. was discovered, 
however, in the limited area under the precipitous cliffs. A 
little lower down in the same area there were a few E. 
tyndarus Esp. of the typical form, and single examples of 
E. melampus Fuessl. 

The following day, the 8th of July, started very disap- 
pointingly as we re-traced our original journey over the 
Julier Pass toward Zurich. It was very cloudy and there 
were heavy showers as we reached the scene of our previous 
endeavours beside the Wallensee. We set about searching for 
the two Maculinea species, but had very little success finding 
them at rest until there were a few spells of watery sunshine, 


106 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


and then both M. nausithous and M. teleius flew reluctantly. 
The latter species was definitely more common, and we saw 
over thirty during the day, many of them worn. Of nausithous 
we saw less than a dozen, though the weather was definitely 
against us. Odd examples were noted of other species, such 
as Brenthis ino Rott., C. semiargus and Maniola jurtina L. 
and Aphantopus hyperantus L. was fairly common. 

The next day, back at Pontresina, the weather still 
showed no signs of clearing at 10 a.m., so we decided to try 
to find the sun on the south side of the Bernina Pass. On our 
way over the Bernina we passed some very promising- 
looking ground, but conditions were so cold and dull that 
it seemed pointless to stop. We made a brief halt beside the 
lake at La Prese, where T. W. C. T. netted E. medusa D. & S., 
but little else apart from M. athalia and C. coenonympha 
arcania L. could be persuaded to lift themselves from the 
wet grass. We finally found the sunshine on a mountain 
slope above Campascio, on the Swiss-Italian border. We took 
a steep and narrow road with a horrendous drop on one side, 
which eventually deposited us among flowery terraced 
meadows looking out over the valley about a thousand feet 
below us. These alpine pastures were bathed in sunshine 
and full of butterflies. although the surrounding hills and 
the valley itself remained under sombre cloud. A few Parnas- 
sius apollo L., in a magnificent form with large red spots, 
floated about over the stonier slopes in company with some 
superb M. arion, of the form obscura Christ. though larger 
and bluer than those in the Val Roseg. There were also 
several Heodes virgaureae L., M. athalia, C. arcania, Argynnis 
aglaia L. and E. ligea L. Single specimens were noted of 
Aporia crataegi L., Meltaea didyma Esp., Lasiommata 
maera L. and C. phicomone. Melanargio galathea L. was 
swarming everywhere. We left this delectable spot at about 
3 p.m. and, crossing the Italian frontier, we started the ascent 
of the Aprica Pass. Here we saw several large black and white 
Nymphalids sailing about near the road. Eventually T. W. 
C. T. briefly captured on of these, a large male A patura iris 
L., which unfortunately slipped from his net. The west side 
of the Aprica also held Leptidea sinapis L., one or two fresh 
Issoria lathonia L. and large numbers of small Mellicta. It 
was hoped that some of these might be Mellicta aurelia Nick., 
but genitalic dissection has so far revealed only athalia. We 
stopped again on the east side of the Pass and collected in a 
swampy hayfield. Here we found more J. lathonia, athalia 
and numbers of A. crataegi at rest on knapweed heads. T. W. 
C. T. found Melitaea cinxia L. and P. hippothoe, and C. J. L. 
took a rather worn skipper which, on dissection, turned out to 
be Pyrgus alveus Hbn. C. J. L. also found a wriggling 
Nymphaline pupa which he fondly hoped might be Nymphalis 
antiopa L., but to his chagrin, three weeks later it produced 
a not entirely unexpected N. io. On our return to the frontier 
we found a full-scale row in progress. Cars were queued up 


BUTTERFLIES IN EASTERN SWITZERLAND 1979 107 


on the further side but the customs officers were ignoring 
them in order to concentrate their efforts on the noisy dispute 
taking place among themselves. It was a truly magnificent 
show, and we were slightly disappointed when another customs 
official appeared and impatiently waved us through. 

We boarded the horse bus at 9.45 the next morning 
intending to make an early assault on the Pic Tschierva. 
On arrival at the hotel an hour later we set off straight away 
for the higher levels. J. M. C-H. and C. J. L. kept mainly 
to the track which wound up the south side of the valley to 
the slopes above the Tschierva Glacier. T. W. C. T. got 
diverted en route by clearings near the upper limits of the 
pine woods. Here he found the first Clossiana thore Hbn. 
and some stronger colonies of E. intermedia before climbing 
above the tree line on the north-facing slopes where C. 
palaemon occurred to at least 7,000 ft. Meanwhile, along 
the main track the other two encountered numbers of O. 
glacialis and the two alpine Boloria. Nearly every time there 
was a rock fall to be crossed Erebia gorge Hbn. appeared 
flitting over the unstable boulders. Netting this little butter- 
fly was a hazardous business however. Higher up near the 
glacier the lovely vivid Euphydryas cynthia D. & S. was flying 
vigorously in the hot sun and there were also one or two 
Euphydryas debilis Oberth. beside the path. These latter but- 
terflies were extremely difficult to come to terms with as 
their dull colouration blended perfectly with the beige turf 
and in flight they seemed to disappear every few seconds. 
Erebia pandrose Bork, P. callidice and P. cacaliae were fairly 
numerous at this level also. 

We decided to climb up the steep hillside above the 
track to nearly the base of the cliffs and cast around for the 
elusive E. flavofasciata. The sun went in for a second or two 
just as a small Erebia fluttered into the grass at the feet of 
C. J. L. It was quickly secured and was a freshly emerged 
male flavofasciata. To salute the event three Alpine Choughs 
sailed over in line abreast calling musically. J. M. C-H., 
higher up on a scree slope had found E£. pluto and E. gorge 
and had taken one of the former and several of the latter by 
cunningly waiting beside a small, flowery patch in the midst 
of the rocks, which these butterflies seemed to find irresistable. 
On hearing of the capture of the other Erebia, he quickly 
descended to quarter the ground with C. J. L., but sadly no 
more flavofasciata were forthcoming. 

The weather remained fine all day, and even at this 
high level butterflies were still flying as we started our return 
journey at about 4.30 p.m. It was a long weary trek back 
to the valley entrance seven miles away, but our minds were 
occupied by the memorable day we had spent among these 
high solitudes of the Tschierva. 

The aforementioned capture of thore by T. W. C. T. 
decided “the venue’ for July.,llth. Jz; M..C-H. jand.C.,J. L. 
took the horse bus direct to the Roseg hotel to search for 


108 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


this fritillary, while T. W. C. T. was keen to look for alcon 
in the small marsh halfway up the valley and elected to walk 
the whole way. C. thore was found to be locally common in 
rocky clearings in the upper half of the valley, and one 
particularly good spot was found where this darkly-patterned 
fritillary flew in excellent numbers. 

At around 2 p.m. T. W. C. T. appeared with two species 
new to our list in his collecting boxes. Clossiana titania Esp. 
was emerging in several places along the valley, and, as well 
as capturing imagines, he had found pupae and a newly 
suspended larva of this species. In addition he had taken a 
fresh Fabriciana niobe L. and netted and released one or two 
worn alcon. J. M. C-H. and T. W. C. T. decided to try the 
slopes above the Tschierva Glacier in a last search for flavo- 
fasciata while C. J. L. went off to look for intermedia, but 
at this stage the skies clouded up and it became cold and 
unproductive. 

On our last day in Switzerland, the 12th of July, the wet, 
cloudy weather continued, but we decided to look at the Albula 
Pass anyway. There were a few blinks of sun when we stopped 
a little way down the north side of the Pass and thrashed 
about among the wet vaccinium bushes. A few P. andromedae 
and B. pales were noted and a single fresh female callidice. 
J. M. C-H. was seen in full flight after a male Colias palaeno 
L. which he caught up with, only to see his quarry escape 
from a fold of the net. We halted briefly lower down near 
Preda, but the rain had started in earnest, and the only find 
was a female C. palaemon on a Aquilegia head. As we 
approached the Wallensee the sun came out and we could 
not resist a last look at the marsh near the lake. Two female 
nansithous were noticed at rest on the Sanguisorba, and one 
or two feleius of ragged aspect flew in the evening sunshine. 

Beyond Zurich we ran into a heavy thunderstorm and the 
rain continued as we drove through the night. At daybreak 
it was no less wet, and we were forced to cancel our plans 
to look at a chalk hillside near Reims. So ended ten highly 
enjoyable and mainly successful days in the Swiss Alps. 


References 


Bretherton R. F. 1966. A Distribution List of the Butterflies of Western 
and Southern Europe. Trans. Soc. Brit. Ent. Vol. 17. 

Bretherton R. F. and de Worms, C. G. M. 1961. Pontresina 1960. 
Ent. Rec. 73: 44-48. 

Chapman T. A. 1901. Notes on Lepidoptera observed on a visit to the 
Engadine in 1900. Ent. Mon. Mag. 37: 130-136. 

Fison, A. J. 1915. Notes on Swiss Rhopalocera. Ent. Rec. 27: 103-109. 

Haig-Thomas, P. The More Local Butterflies of Switzerland. Ent. Rec. 
39: 159-161, 165-167. 

Harris, H. G. and Scott, E. 1939. Weesen and Pontresina.Ent. Rec. 
§1: 20-23. 

Higgins, L. G. 1975. Classification of European Butterflies. Collins. 

Higgins, L. G. and Riley, N. D. 1970. A Field Guide to the Butterflies 
of Britain and Europe. Collins. 

Warren, B. C. S. 1923. Six weeks among the Butterflies of Eastern 
Switzerland. Ent. Rec. 35: 73-79, 96-101. 

Wheeler, G. 1903. Butterflies of Switzerland and the Alps. 


PEATE Vill 


Precis archesia ugandensis 


Left—upperside. Right—underside. 
1 and 2. Bred ex-Uganda 27°C. 

and 4. Bred ex-Uganda 21°C. 

and 6. Bred ex-Uganda 16°C. 


tw 


tn 


109 


Precis archesia ugandensis (Lep.: Nymphalidae): 
A New Subspecies 


By L. McLeop, B.Sc., M.PHIL., F.R.E.S.* 


Precis archesia Cramer is widely distributed throughout 
east, central and southern Africa. The adult butterfly exhibits 
extreme seasonal polyphenism and several phenotypes have 
been described: f. archesia Cramer 1782, f. pelasgis Godart 
1823 (Figs. 7-8), f. chapunga Hewitson 1864, f. staudingeri 
Dewitz 1879 (Figs. 9-10), f. semitypica Aurivilleus 1898, f. 
inornata Neustetter 1916, f. coryndoni Rothschild 1918, f. 
obsoleta Joicey & Talbot 1921 (Figs. 11-12). Form frobeniusi 
Strand 1909 is the subject of a separate paper. Until now the 
species had not been subdivided. 


Descriptive 

Precis archesia ugandensis ssp. nov. 
Holotype of 16.x.1967 Kisubi, Entebbe, Uganda. H. Falke leg. 
Allotype 2 16.x.1967 Kisubi, Entebbe, Uganda. H. Falke leg. 
(presently to be donated to the British Museum (Natural 
History)). 
Paratypes: 20 o and 20 9. All in coll. L. McLeod. 
Distribution: Uganda. Noted localities in Uganda are Labwor 
Hills, Mabira, W. Elgon, Mulange, Jinja and Entebbe (van 
Someren 1960). 
Sudan: Imatong Mts. and Didinga (Hale-Carpenter 1928). 
Kajaka, Bwengwe, Kajokaji and Lotti Forest. 

The subspecies is characterised by being slightly smaller 
in size than the nominative race. The average winglength of 
ssp. ugandensis is 2.4 cm and that of the nominative race 3.2 
cm. Both fore and hindwings of ugandensis are more rounded 
than f. pelasgis of the nominative race and the slight tail-like 
protuberance or hook at the extremity of vein 1b of the hind- 
wing is here almost lacking. The post discal bar of the upper- 
sides of both fore and hindwings are more orange than those 
of f. pelagis of the nominative race. The orange colour of the 
post discal bars of Sudanese specimens is even deeper. This 
character is more apparent in fresh specimens. The post discal 
bars of worn or old specimens are often a pale cream colour 
in both subspecies. Examination of ¢ genitalia has shown no 
constant differences between subspecies, although in a high 
proportion of ugandensis the terminal portions of the valvae 
are somewhat shortened. 

Although common in Uganda, all specimens taken there 
have been of f. pelasgis and f. semitypica, the latter being 
extremely uncommon. Examination of many collections 
including those of the British Museum (T. H. E. Jackson, 
V. G. L. van Someren, and Rothschild Collections); Muséum 
Nationale, Paris; the Booth Museum, Brighton (Hall Collec- 
tion of Nymphalidae); Cambridge University; and the National 
(Coryndon) Museum, Nairobi, Kenya, has failed to produce 


* Quartier des Ecoles, 84330, St. Pierre de Vassols, France. 


110 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IV/V/80 


any Ugandan specimens of forms other than pelasgis and 
semitypica. Correspondence with numerous lepidopterists has 
also confirmed this fact, e.g. Carcasson 1968, Falke 1967. 
Apparently the seasonal forms archesia, chapunga, staudingeri, 
coryndoni, and obsoleta are lacking in ugandensis. This may 
indicate a different genotype to that of the nominative race, 
perhaps an adaptation to the more or less constant climatic 
conditions of Uganda and southern Sudan. 

The lack of extreme seasonal polyphenism in P. archesia 
ugandensis is not surprising if one examines the meteorologi- 
cal data of Entebbe, a locality in which this insect is common 
(Table 1). The monthly mean maximum and mean minimum 
temperatures vary little and rarely is the difference between 
maximum and minimum more than 10°C. The monthly mean 
hours of sunshine per day remains fairly constant,as does the 
relative humidity. Uganda being situated on the equator has a 
constant twelve hour photoperiod. 

Few P. a. ugandensis have been collected in the Sudan. 
Hale-Carpenter collected 46 specimens of f. semitypica and 2 
f. pelasgis at Didinga in December 1925, and Kent-Lemon 
collected 8 f. pelasgis in the Imatong Mts. in June-September 
1919 (Hale-Carpenter 1928). Two specimens collected by Hale- 
Carpenter, kindly loaned by the Hope Department of Entomo- 
logy, University of Oxford, are similar to the specimen illus- 
trated in Figs. 5-6 but the discal bars of the underside are much 
narrower, being greatly invaded by brown pigment. In the 
British Museum collection are some specimens labelled 
““Joicey Bequest 1934 — 120” collected in Kajaka, Bwengwe 
and Kajokaji. Another specimen is labelled Lotti Forest, mid- 
December 1938. 

No difference between larvae of ssp. wgandensis and ssp. 
archesia can be seen. The larvae are dark brown with fine 
white spotting and are typical of the genus in posessing longi- 
tudinal rows of spined elongated protuberances and two long, 
spiny horns covered with moles on the head. The description by 
Pinhey (1949) agrees with larvae from Kenya and Uganda. 

As noted by Clark & Dickson (1957) in P. octavia Cramer, 
the larvae of P. archesia may have from five to seven instars, 
but unlike those of P. octavia, larvae of P. archesia do not 
exhibit polymorphism or polyphenism. 


Experimental 

Since 1964 when I first became interested in the seasonal 
polyphenism exhibited by certain species of the genus Precis, 
several African species have been the subjects of my special 
attention. P. archesia, because of its extreme seasonal poly- 
phenism, was one of the species with which I carried out 
experiments to determine which of the environmental factors 
induce the variation of pigmentation and wingshape. 

The earlier experiments with P. archesia did not lead to 
many conclusions because of the difficulty in obtaining adequate 
supplies of living insects. However, it was shown in 1966 that 
seasonal polyphenism in P. archesia from Kenya was not in- 


Month 
January 
February 
March 
April 

May 

June 

July 
August 
September 
October 
November 
December 


TABLE 1 


METEOROLOGICAL DATA FROM THREE LOCALITIES IN WHICH 
PRECIS ARCHESIA IS FOUND 


MEAN TEMPERATURES IN °C (taken from approximately 25 years) 


Didinga 
Sudan 
Max. 
24.0 
AB)eI) 
24.6 
22.6 
Died, 
21.0 
19.3 
19.5 
21.2 
22.4 
23.0 
23.2 


P. a. ugandensis 


Min. 
IS\577 
15.1 
15.8 
15.4 
14.5 
1335 7/ 
13.5 
113),72 
13.4 
14.2 
14.3 
14.5 


f. pelasgis common 


f. semitypica rare 


Entebbe 
Uganda 

Max. 

26.8 

26.8 

26.7 

25.9 

25.5 

)3 

24.9 

5), 

25.9 

26.2 

26.2 

26.1 

P. a. ugandensis 


Min. 
16.8 
17.1 

17.9 
18.0 
17.8 
16.9 
16.1 

16.2 
16.4 
17.0 
17.3 
W7/o3k 


f. pelasgis common 


f. semitypica common 


Karen, Nairobi 


Kenya 
Max. 
25.6 
27.8 
28.9 
28.3 
27.8 
27.8 
25.6 
25.6 
27.8 
27.8 
24.4 
25.6 
P. a. archesia 


Min. 
15.0 
6.1 
10.0 
11.1 
10.6 
5.6 
5.0 
4.4 
5.6 
7.8 
[422 
11.1 


f. pelasgis common 


f. semitypica common 


PLATE Ix 


y 

YoU LOG 

> ra 
BAN 


Oca 
os S 
mes a 


SOC e fea Satan! 

o oe . 

pee, sn e ve: 
SOS Soy 


“3 
. 


Precis archesia archesia 
Left—Upperside. Right—Underside. | 
7and 8. f. pelasgis God. Kenya. 
9 and 10. staudingeri Dew. Tanganyika. 
11 and 12. f. obsoleta J. & T. Angola. 


PRECIS ARCHESIA UGANDENSIS (LEP.: NYMPHALIDAE) I11 


duced by variation of relative humidity. In 1967 by giving 
larvae from Uganda and Kenya unlimited supplies of food, it 
was shown that difference in adult size between the two cul- 
tures was a constant character. 

Following my return from Kenya to England in 1967, I 
continued to receive supplies of living Precis butterflies from 
contacts I had made while in East Africa. On 20th October 
1967 I received by air mail several living P. archesia butterflies 
together with certain other species, which had been collected 
a few days previously at Kisubi, Entebbe, Uganda. A number 
of eggs had been laid in their containers. When caged with 
Coleus forskohlii under laboratory conditions, two females 
continued to lay eggs throughout October and until their 
death in mid-November. A total of 147 eggs were obtained. 
When maintained under optimum conditions 127 larvae 
achieved the second instar stage. 

I had already concluded from my work on P. octavia 
that temperature is the environmental factor which induces 
seasonal polyphenism in that species. I considered that because 
the two species are closely allied, the same environmental 
factor would probably induce polyphenism in P. archesia. The 
127 larvae were divided up into three batches of forty insects. 
Each batch was maintained under different constant tempera- 
ture, all having the same constant 50% humidity and 12 hour 
photoperiod. The three temperatures were 27°, 21° and 16°C, 
a range which produces both extreme forms and intermediates 
of P. octavia. (It is a pity that I did not carefully examine 
natural climatic conditions in relation to the distribution of 
the various forms of P. archesia before choosing this tempera- 
ture range. Lower temperatures would have given more 
interesting results.) 

On emergence the adult butterflies did not show any of 
the variation normally characteristic of the nominative race 
(Plate IX), and all could be classified as f. pelasgis. However, 
some slight variations were noted. These variations are figured 
in Plate VIII and can be directly related to the different tem- 
peratures. The higher temperature of 27°C produced adults 
with black post discal spots lacking any pupils on uppersides 
fore and hindwings. The upperside forewings exhibited only 
traces of blue pigmentation of the submarginal band in spaces 
4,5 and 6. The central transverse bar of the cell was thick and 
bright orange. The borders of the transverse bars of the cell 
lacked blue pigmentation (Figs. 1-2). The lower temperature of 
16°C produced adults with white pupils to the post discal 
ocelli of upperside fore and hindwings. The intensity of blue 
colouration of the submarginal band was increased, and blue 
borders were apparent to the transverse bars of the cell (Figs. 
5-6). These latter specimens were approaching f. semitypica. 

None of the insects bred at 16°C achieved the intensity of 
blue pigmentation found in a specimen taken on Mt. Elgon by 
H. Falke in 1967. The submarginal band and borders to the 
transverse bars of the cell are of a bright blue, and there are 


112 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


large white pupils to the post discal spots of both upperside 
and underside. A similar specimen in the Rothschild collection 
of the British Museum was taken at Tamburu, northern Bahr- 
el-Ghazal. Both of these insects must have experienced tem- 
peratures of lower than 16°C and are the most extreme low 
temperature forms of P. a. ugandensis known from the several 
major collections I have examined. Both of these butterflies 
can be classified as f. semitypica. 


General 

A very small note written in pencil which I found pinned 
inside a drawer of P. archesia in the British Museum indicates 
that Hall also considered the Ugandan specimens to be a 
separate subspecies. On referring to his unpublished mono- 
graph on the Nymphalinae, (in the Booth Museum, Brighton, 
England) I found no mention of this. There was, however, a 
description of var. guruana Rogenhofer from Uganda (Hall 
1908) which he incorrectly classified as P. archesia instead of 
P. limnoria Klug. 

There is a rather irregular distribution of seasonal forms 
throughout the range of P. archesia archesia. F. obsoleta has, 
to my knowledge, been taken only in Angola: f. chapunga 
occurs mainly in Rhodesia and Malawi (Pinhey 1949, Gifford 
1965): in eastern and central Kenya, like Uganda, only f. 
pelasgis and semitypica are found, whereas in western Kenya, 
f. archesia occurs (Stoneham 1965). One would expect seasonal 
forms not normally found in a locality to appear from time to 
time when unusual climatic conditions prevail. 

This irregular distribution of seasonal forms is to be 
expected in a seasonally polyphenic species with such a wide 
distribution. In most lepidoptera the distribution of a species 
is closely related to the distribution of the larval foodplant. 
Several larval foodplants are known for P. archesia and the 
differing requirements of these plants might possibly restrict 
the insects to differing biotypes, e.g. Angola, where the larval 
foodplant is Plectranthus retroflexus and central Kenya, where 
the larval foodplant is Coleus forskohlii. 

Owen (1971) proposed that in the tropics, humidity and 
rainfall were the primary factors involved in the induction 
of seasonal polyphenism in butterflies. He also suggested that 
the relative change in environmental conditions was the neces- 
sary stimulus initiating change of phenotype. It is known that 
in seasonally polyphenic butterflies of temperate latitudes, 
photoperiod is the primary factor controlling adult phenotype, 
with temperatures also involved (Shapiro 1975, 1976, 1977). 
In the tropics, where photoperiod remains almost constant 
throughout the year, undoubtedly temperature alone is the 
primary factor. This has been demonstrated for P. octavia 
(McLeod 1968, 1976) but little information is available on 
other species. 


Acknowledgments 
I wish to express my thanks to all those who have helped 
me during this study especially Mr. R. I. Vane-Wright of the 


PRECIS ARCHESIA UGANDENSIS (LEP.: NYMPHALIDAE) 113 


British Museum of Natural History, Dr. G. Legg of the 
Booth Museum of Natural History, Brighton, Mr. E. Taylor of 
the Hope Department of Entomology, University of Oxford, 
Dr. A. Irwin, of the Castle Museum, Norwich, and Rev. H. 
Falke, recently of Kisubi, Entebbe, Uganda. 


References 

Carcasson, W., 1968. Personal communication. 

Gliske: “Ge'@, and Dickson,"C: (G. '€.,)7 19577 Life History .of Precis 
octavia Cram. J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr., 20, No. 2. 

Falke, H., 1967. Personal communication. 

Gifford, D., 1965. Butterflies of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi. 

Hale-Carpenter, G. D., 1928. Two collections of Butterflies from the 
south east corner of the Sudan. Trans. ent. Soc. Lond., 80: 
p. 25-54. 

Hall, A., 1908. Notes for a Monograph of the Butterflies of the sub- 
family Nymphalinae. 1X. (unpublished). 

McLeod, L., 1968. Controlled environment experiments with Precis 
octavia Cramer (Nymphalidae). J. Res. Lep. 7: 1-8. 

McLeod, L., 1976. An investigation into the factors causing variation 
in pigmentation and wingshape in Precis octdvia Cramer (Lepidop- 
tera, Nymphalidae) M. Phil. Thesis, University of London. 

Owen, D. F., 1971. Tropical Butterflies, Clarendon Press, Oxford. 

Pinhey, E. C. G., 1949. Butterflies of Rhodesia, Salisbury, Rhodesia. 

Shapiro, A. M., 1975. Developmental and phenotypic responses to photo- 
period in uni and bivoltine Pieris napi in California. Trans. R. ent. 
Soc. Lond., 127: 65-71. 

Shapiro, A. M., 1976. Seasonal Polyphenism. Evolutionary Biology, 9: 
259-333. 

Shapiro, A.M., 1977. Phenotype induction in Pieris napi L. Role of 
temperature and photoperiod in a coastal California population. 
Ec. Entomology, 2: 217-224. 

Stoneham, H. F., 1965. Butterflies of Western Kenya, Parts 10-11, 
Nairobi, Kenya. 

van Someren, V. G. L., 1960. Distribution Lists of the Butterflies of 
East Africa (unpublished). 


COLEOPHORA TRIGEMINELLA (FUCHS). — In view of the 
apparent rarity of this species (the last record appears to have 
been c. 1906), it is worthy (albeit rather belatedly! ) of record- 
ing the finding of two larval cases of C. trigeminella Fuchs on 
22nd April 1967 on Apple during the then South London 
ENHS field meeting to Sheep Leas, Horsley, Surrey. I was not 
successful in rearing either case, but the case is quite distinc- 
tive and J. M. Chalmers-Hunt has kindly confirmed the identi- 
poet —N. F. HEAt, Fosters, Detling Hill, Nr. Maidstone, 

ent. 

MaARUCA TESTULALIS (GEYER) IN WANSTEAD PARK. — With 
reference to the late Baron de Worms’ note on M. testulalis 
(antea: 286), Mr. E. C. Pelham-Clinton has written to say 
that either the determination or the Baron’s description of it as 
having yellow hindwings is incorrect. The determination, which 
was made at the British Museum (Natural History), is correct 
and the Baron’s description was a slip. The specimen is now in 
the Passmore Edwards Museum, which also houses the superb 
Thurnall collection of Pyraloidea and Tortricoidea. I write 
this note at the request of Mr. Colin Plant, who captured the 
specimen of M. testulalis. — A. M. EMMET, Labrey Cottage, 
Victoria Gardens, Saffron Walden, Essex, CB11 3AF. 27.i.80. 


114 ENTOMOLOGISTI’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


The rearing of Cheilosia paganus and C. fraterna 
(Diptera: Syrphidae) 
By ALAN E. STusss * 


Cheilosia is the largest genus of British hoverflies with 
33 species on the British list plus additional species yet to be 
published. One of the major outstanding biological problems 
with our hoverfly fauna is to determine the breeding sites for 
the species in this very diverse genus. One species, C. scutellata 
Fallen has been reared from fungi (especially Botelus) but the 
various studies involving the rearing of Diptera from fungi 
would have revealed a wider range of Cheilosia species had 
this been the main larval food for the genus. Various other 
species have been reared from flowering plants and such an 
ecological relationship could in theory provide plenty of scope 
for the evolution of species diversity. The few known plant 
associations are mainly inconspicuous occurrences in roots, so 
solution to the problem amounts to a needle in a haystack 
search of at least the more robust herbaceous plants in the 
British flora. 

My own revisionary studies on the taxonomy of the 
adults had led me to an interest in a possible larval relationship 
with some of the plants whose flowers attract the adult hover- 
flies. The timing of the present discoveries results from the 
annual meeting of dipterists on 23rd September 1978 when 
a discussion on the biology of hoverflies led Dr. Martin 
Speight to lay strong emphasis on the need for more vigilant 
efforts in tracing larval foodplants from adult flower associa- 
tions. The matter may not be straight forward since, for 
instance, some species which breed in thistle roots are adult 
in early spring long before the flowers are out and some 
Cheilosia visit a wide range of flowers. However, thus enthused, 
two of my autumn forays revealed larvae of species whose 
breeding site was previously unknown. 

Cheilosia paganus (Meigen) 

On Ist October 1978 a walk on Horsendon Hill, Middle- 
sex, took me past a stand of cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris 
L. Hoffm.), long dead but reviving memories of the lure 
that umbelliferous flowers have for Cheilosia and other hover- 
flies. The known associations are with thistles, figwort and 
Primula, the prospects with umbells not being good because I 
have frequently inspected (in the spring) the roots of angelica 
(Angelica), wild parsnip (Pastinaca) and hogweed (Heracleum) 
for other dipterous larvae without ‘having seen any Cheilosia. 

The plants were in partial shade at the edge of hawthorn 
bushes. Pulling up the dead stems proved quite successful 
(hopefully it not illegal to uproot dead plants! ). Many of the 
stems came up intact but these mostly seemed to be lacking 
in any damage or rot. A few broke off at ground level and 
these were generally the rotten ones. By gently easing such 
stems out of the ground, the largest tap roots were found to be 
in a wet and gungey state of decay. Within this gunge were 
*91 Clitheroe Avenue, Hanwell, London, W.7. 


REARING OF CHEILOSIA PAGANUS AND C. FRATERNA 115 


rather inconspicuous dumpy white larvae about 1 cm long 
which were immediately recognisable as being Syrphidae 
since they had a short ‘tail’ consisting of projecting fused hind 
spiracles. It was almost certain that these larvae belonged to 
the genus Cheilosia. 

One larva was preserved in alcohol and another four 
were used for rearing. The main problem with so few larvae 
was to devise a suitable rearing technique. It should be noted 
that the larvae always occurred as singletons so an artificial 
gregareous existance may have been unsuitable. Adapting my 
technique for rearing from dead wood, a plastic seed propaga- 
tor was used. Inside this, two larvae were placed in their tap 
roots within a polythene bag which was not sealed but 
allowed access for a small amount of air so that fungi might 
hopefully not invade. For the other two larvae, a 32 inch 
flowerpot was filled with a mixture of moist peat and clay 
soil and a tap root and a piece of gunge, each with a larva 
placed within this medium. The propagator was kept over 
winter in a garage. 

It was expected that the larvae would pupate in sifu but 
by spring it was found that the larvae had vacated the poly- 
thene bag. An adult female C. paganus was seen within the 
propagator on 12th April 1979 and it was soon realised that 
another female and two males were dead within, but had not 
been seen since they had crawled underneath the flowerpot and 
a bottom lining of newspaper. Search of the flowerpot 
revealed one empty puparium at the top of the now dried up 
tap root and another within the soil. Since no puparia could 
be found elsewhere in the propagator, it seems that the larvae 
from the polythene bag could have got into the flowerpot 
through holes in the base, though the full complement of 
puparia could not be accounted for. 


Cheilosia fraterna (Meigen) 

The Diptera Recording Schemes field meeting based at 
Newbridge-on-Wye, Powys, included a visit on 8th October 
1978 to a Breconshire Naturalists Trust reserve just over a 
mile north of the village. On the flanks of a sallow covered 
fen there was a sizeable area of rough grassland with abun- 
dant marsh thistle (Cirsium palustre (L.) Scop.). The summer 
growth had largely died back but the opportunity seemed right 
for finding larvae or puparia of the early spring hoverflies 
Cheilosia albipila Meigen and C. grossa (Fallen) which have 
been recorded from the roots of thistles. A larva was found in 
the first minute simply by turning the stems down so that the 
base of the stem was seen just below ground. The larva was a 
conspicuous dull white against the dark soil and its position 
corresponded with a hole in the stem about 5 mm round 
scarcely below the soil surface. The hole gave access to a 
rather wet gungey decay material within the base of the stem. 
At least 20 minutes was spent turning back 50 or more further 


stems, and uprooting a few, but no more larvae could be 
found. 


116 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


The larva was placed in a glass tube with a little moist 
soil and the stem and a larger amount of soil put in a poly- 
thene bag. On reaching home later that day the stem was 
replanted in a 3 inch square plastic flowerpot and the larva 
rehabilitated as naturally as possible. The pot was placed in a 
polythene bag with the mouth constricted but not sealed and 
then placed within a seed propogator. The idea of the poly- 
thene bag was to prevent the soil drying out and indeed this 
was very successful compared with the C. paganus pot without 
a polythene bag. 

It was frustrating that the expected early Cheilosia had 
not emerged in the relative warmth of the garage by early 
April. On turning the root back, there was a whitish puparium 
by the hole in the root just below the soil surface. As time 
went by it was increasingly clear that another species was 
involved. On 12th April the puparium had become dark and 
on the morning of the 14th a freshly emerged female C. 
fraterna was seen on the inside of the polythene bag. 


Comment 

These few observations require following up before such 
associations can be regarded as typical for the species con- 
cerned. One aspect which needs clarification is whether or not 
the presence of the fly larva causes the state of rot described 
or whether the larvae can only succeed in stems already 
damaged with rot. If umbelliferous plants are normally utilised 
by C. paganus, then one may note that in addition to cow 
parsley, the adults also frequent hedge-parsley (Torilis), and 
burnet saxifrage (Pimpinella saxifraga L.) which have rela- 
tively solid stems in the autumn because the flowers are late, a 
useful state of decay in at least Torilis not occurring until spring. 
Since C. paganus is out from spring till autumn, it remains 
a matter of conjecture as to whether eggs are laid on live 
stems or decaying ones. C. fraterna is a spring species so must 
(as with C. albipila and C. grossa) lay its eggs on new thistle 
stems, though this may not be the normal foodplant. It seems 
probable that some species use several host plants — for 
instance C. variabilis (Panzer) (on figwort, Scrophularia) and 
C. antiqua Meigen (on Primula) occur commonly where their 
recorded foodplants are absent. C. semifasciata Becker occurs 
in both roseroot (Sedum telephium L.) and wall pennywort 
(Umbilicus). One of the leads for further larval discoveries 
may be the very close association of adult C. albitarsis with 
buttercup flowers, Ranunculus. Also one may note that with 
the related hoverfly Portevinia maculata (Fallen), whose adults 
are sO common on ransoms (Allium ursinum L.), no British 
worker seems to have clarified the exact nature of the larval 
breeding site so we are relying on vague old published state- 
ments from the continent. 

Apart from the interest in discovering the larval biology 
of the Cheilosia species, there is an urgent need for bred series 
in order to unravel some of the outstanding taxonomic pro- 
blems with the adults. For instance there is still an element of 


REARING OF CHEILOSIA PAGANUS AND C. FRATERNA 117 


doubt as to whether C. paganus is one species or two since 
some field samples include a surprising range in variation of 
antennal and other characters. We are presumably a long way 
from breeding through from the eggs of a captive female, but 
at least series bred from known situations would be a step in 
the right direction. Also further information on plant associa- 
tions may aid a better understanding of the evolutionary 
relationship between Cheilosia species. 

The puparia of C. paganus and C. fraterna have seemingly 
good taxonomic characters, most obviously on the anterior and 
posterior spiracles, but also in the anal area and in the extent 
of development of posterior lobes. No attempt is made here to 
describe puparia since this is best done in comparison with all 
available species. John Haslett has begun work at Oxford 
University which may lead to a more comprehensive review. 
Hopefully readers of this account will include lepidopterists, 
coleopterists and others who more frequently search in plants 
and among roots than do dipterists. It is quite likely that all 
potential host plants for Cheilosia have been searched by non- 
dipterists and ‘useless’ dipterous maggots discarded. So please 
look out for somewhat robust larvae with a short ‘tail’, or 
dumpy puparia with a short ‘tail’ and two short anterior horns. 
It ought to be possible to discover the plant associations of at 
least our common Cheilosia and this might give a better lead 
into determining the host plants of the rare species. 

References 
Coe, “ L., 1953. Diptera Syrphidae, Handbook Ident. Br. Insects., 10 
aa R., and Chandler, P., 1978. Higher Plants. In A Dipterist’s 

Handbook. Amateur Entomologist, 15: 213-228. 


ON BEING “‘SSTARED AND GRINNED AT BY THE VULGAR’. — 
Dr. R. S. Wilkinson’s delightful note (Ent. Rec., 91: 289-293) 
on embarrassing entomological incidents reminds me of two 
such events which might have turned out less happily. 

One of my more unusual data labels records the capture 
of the medium sized moth Persectania aversa Walk. (roughly 
the size of Agrotis segetum D. & S., the Turnip moth) caught 
at 35,000 feet. We were between Sydney and Perth when the 
insect flew out of the air hostess’ blouse as she bent to serve 
my neighbour with a Scotch. Having as usual a handy pill box 
I captured it as it sat on the arm of the seat without attracting 
the attention of the other passengers, but to the admiration of 
the hostess. 

A useful spot for captures in New York used to be (and, 
maybe, still is) a brilliantly lit hot dog stand on the corner of 
6th Avenue and 42nd Street. When passing one evening en 
route to my hotel, I saw what seemed to be an interesting 
Geometrid poised on a customer’s plate. It was successfully 
boxed while his head was turned to speak to his neighbour. 
Unhappily on investigation the moth was found to be heavily 
contaminated by mustard which may have hindered its ability 
to fly. J. A. C. GREENwoop, Hambledon House, Rogate, West 
Sussex GU33 5EE. 


118 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


Oxygastra curtisii (Dale, 1834) (Odonata: Corduli- 
idae) in Bournemouth, an Historical Note 


By S. C. S. Brown* 

The first specimen of this dragonfly was taken on Parley 
Heath, Dorset, by J. C. Dale on June 29th 1820, but was not 
named and described by him until 1834. It was then lost sight 
of for a period of 45 years, when in 1878 H. Goss took 
six examples on a heath to the north of Pokesdown, near 
Bournemouth. He visited the locality again in 1882 and 1890, 
and made further captures. On August 13th 1900, he returned 
and made a sketch-map of the area. He did not say if he 
saw curtisii that year, but from the lateness of his visit, it 
would have been almost certainly over. Copies of the map 
were sent to a few interested entomologists, and acting on 
the information supplied, the locality was visited and a 
number of the insect secured. The heath in question was 
known as ‘“‘Poor Common’, and was situated close to 
Pokesdown Railway Station. It consisted of a marshy valley, 
with a small pond at its western end. This valley bore a 
stream which ran eastwards for about a half mile, where it 
entered the river Stour, at a place called ‘‘Sheepwash’’, so 
named from the time that sheeprearing was carried on in 
the neighbourhood. The locality had much in common with 
the one at Parley, where the West Moors river joins the 
Stour. The distance between the two places is about 2 miles. 

The land was purchased by the Bournemouth Corporation 
in 1900. In 1904 a considerable portion was converted into 
a public park and playing fields. At a later date the remainder 
was built over and the pond and stream filled in. The banks 
of the river at ‘‘Sheepwash’’ have been considerably altered 
by the dredging and straightening of the Stour. 

In the Hope Department at Oxford, are specimens from 
Bournemouth in the Dale, Lucas, Robertson and Nevinson 
collections, totalling 26 in all. The dates, when known, range 
from 1892 to 1905. One male, taken by Lucas, is labelled: 
“Christchurch, Hants”. Another, also a male, captured by 
C. W. Dale, has a label: “‘Iford, June 10th 1892 (C. W.)”. 
There is some significance about these two, for it would show 
that both were taken on the banks of the river Stour, and 
not on the heath at Pokesdown. Iford is about 4+ mile down 
stream from “Sheepwash”. In the British Museum (Nat. 
Hist.), are three specimens from Bournemouth, taken by 
R. B. Robertson in 1905, and one in the Gardiner collection 
labelled: ‘‘Pokesdown’’. I have been unable to trace the 
curtisii taken by H. Goss, who died in 1908. 

Acknowledgements 

I wish to express my thanks to Dr. Marcus de V.Graham, 
of the Hope Department, Oxford: to Mr. S. J. Brooks of 
the Department of Entomology, British Museum, and to Mr. 
P. C. Ensom, Assistant Curator of the Dorset County Museum, 
Dorchester, for their assistance in answering my queries. 

* 158 Harewood Avenue, Bournemouth, Dorset. 


REARING OF CHEILOSIA PAGANUS AND C. FRATERNA 119 


References 


Dale, J. C. 1834 Cordulia curtisii Dale, a species hitherto underscribea. 
Loudon’s Mag. nat. Hist., 7: 60-61. 

Goss, E. 1878. Cordulia Curtisi in Hampshire. Ent. mon. Mag.,15: 92. 

Goss, H. 1886. Oxygastra Curtisi, Dale, in Hampshire. Ent. mon. Mag., 
23791 

Goss, H. 1900. A locality for Oxygastra Curtisii. Ent. mon Mag., 
36: 241-242. 


A STRANGE METHOD OF CAPTURING A LEPIDOPTERON. — 
I have caught many sphingids and other Lepidoptera in various 
parts of the world, but never by a stranger method than that 
employed recently. 

I was fishing, singularly unsuccessfully, for black bass at 
the Ebenezer dam in northern Transvaal (near Haenertsburg) 
and in the fading light of a summer evening decided to attach 
a white float to my line. A moment after my first cast using 
the new “rig” I was rewarded with a sharp impact and the rod 
came alive in my hands — but lo and behold my float bobbed 
quietly on the water and there was no fish on the hook. It took 
a few moments to realize that a sphingid had flown full tilt 
into the “eye” at the end of my rod where it had wedged itself, 
its wings beating furiously but helplessly, and causing the rod 
to vibrate as if I had hooked an ESCOM power-line. 

Having freed the ‘‘monster’” and sent it on its way, I 
retrieved my line and prepared for another cast. A sphingid 
dived past me and hovered over an upturned bottle top glow- 
ing whitely in the grass behind me. Its ‘‘tongue” was out and 
if ever I saw a moth licking its chops it was that moth. As I 
cast, the sphingid turned and zoomed after the white float as 
it looped through the air. And when the float smacked down 
on the water the moth hovered over it predatorially, before 
darting off over the marshes and tree-lined banks in search of 
more rewarding “‘flowers’’. 

Thereafter, hardly a cast was not investigated by some 
passing moth, and if there had been a butterfly-net, instead of 
a hook attached to my line, I’ve a feeling that my “‘bag”’ would 
have been a good deal greater. Now I know that attracting 
insects to u.v. lamps at night is old hat, and that Morpho and 
other butterflies are lured within net-reach by placing a dead 
specimen on the ground, but has anyone ever thought of luring 
sphingids to a “‘flower sized’”’ white disc placed conveniently on 
the lawn (perhaps a moving disc is even more attractive), or 
else placing a white plastic ball inside your net and letting the 
beasts fly right in? — M. J. WELLS, Botanical Research Insti- 
tute, Pretoria. 


BLAIR’S SHOULDER-KNOT IN CORNWALL. — With reference 
to the record of this species in Wales (Ent. Rec., 91: 322), I 
wish to report the capture of a single male in an actinic light 
trap at Veryan, Cornwall. The trap was situated on the beach 
in wait for migrants on the evning of the 23rd October 1979. 
— COoLin Hart, 86 Brighton Road, Hooley, Coulsden, Surrey. 


120 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


Leptophloeus clematidis (Erichson) (Col. Cucujidae) 
discovered in Suffolk 


By David R. Nash’ 


Leptophloeus clematidis (Er.) must be considered the 
rarest of our native Laemophloeinae. According to available 
published records, it would appear that the beetle has been 
taken in this country in only four localities, three of them in 
Kent, the other in Oxfordshire. Fowler (1889) reported it 
from Gravesend (Janson), Dartford (Champion), and Henley 
(Power), whilst the Supplement (1913) to this work adds 
Higham (Walker). Mr. A. A. Allen (in Jitt.) informs me that, 
according to the late Dr. A. M. Massee, the last known 
captures were those of J. J. Walker at Higham. Apparently, 
Dr. Massee worked most strenuously for the beetle at Higham 
and elsewhere in Kent, but without success. Mr. Allen has 
also often tried to find the insect. Since the captures cited 
above, L. clematidis appears to have been lost sight of as a 
British species. 

On April 17th, 1977, I found the beetle to be quite 
common (c. 20 individuals noted) with its host Xylocleptes 
bispinus (Duftschmid) in dead stems of Clematis vitalba 
L. at Little Blakenham, near Ipswich, Suffolk (TM14). I 
re-visited the locality on April 30th, 1978, to confirm the 
continued presence of the species, but was only able to find 
a dead example in a cobweb. I looked for the beetle again 
on April 18th, 1979, and immediately found three examples, 
of which two were retained. The colony is in a sheltered, 
sunny spot on the chalk and appears restricted to a few 
metres, despite the abundance of Clematis and Xylocleptes 
in the immediate vicinity. 

In view of the paucity of information available to 
Coleopterists who may wish to search effectively for L. 
clematidis, details of my own limited experience may be of 
value. The beetle appears to be found most easily by peeling 
off the loose, stringy bark of Clematis stems with a diameter 
of about | cm. If this procedure is carried out slowly and 
gently the beetles will usually be found clinging to the hard 
interior of the stem. The most efficient way of doing this is 
to break off about a 30 cm. length of dead Clematis and 
remove the bark over a white plastic sheet. As the beetles 
can be found inside the Xylocleptes burrows as well — 
although in my experience not in such numbers — the de- 
barked piece of stem may then be split longitudinally with 
the aid of a thumbnail and its interior examined. These 
observations are based on very limited time spent looking 
for the species, and it may prove to be equally easily found 
in the thinner Xylocleptes-infested stems. Because of the 
rarity and apparently extreme localisation of the beetle, I 


*266 Colchester Road, Lawford, Essex CO11 2BU. 


LEPTOPHLOEUS CLEMATIDIS DISCOVERED IN NORFOLK PA 


have deliberately only searched a limited number of suitable 
stems each year on the precise site of the colony. 

It remains to be seen whether L. clematidis is still to be 
found in its old haunts. If it is extremely localised even within 
these few places, then great diligence or luck will be required 
if it is to be located. The late Dr. Massee, however, was 
renowned for his energetic persistence in the field in pursuit 
of elusive species. His failure, and that of Mr. Allen, to locate 
this Cucijid is perhaps indicative that the species could be 
extinct in Kent. I have no information regarding the Oxford- 
shire capture, or whether other collectors have tried to find 
it there. I have searched unsuccessfuly for L. clematidis in 
Wiltshire. 


Acknowledgements 
I thank Mr. A. A. Allen for helpful correspondence 
regarding the activities of himself and the late Dr. Massee 
in the search for L. clematidis in the post-Fowler era. 


References 
Fowler, W. W. (1889). The Coleoptera of the British Islands. vol. 3. 
Reeve & Co. 
Fowler, W. W. & Donisthorpe, H. (1913). The Coleoptera of the British 
Islands. vol. 6. (Supplement). Reeve & Co. 


COLEOPHORA LASSELLA STAUD. IN Kent. — On the 9th 
June 1979, in company with Mr. M. Newcombe, I spent several 
hours in the Thornden/Radfall woods, near Blean. Though 
mainly cloudy, the day was pleasant, insects were quite active, 
and a number of interesting species occurred. 

When compiling a list for Mr. Newcombe, I made several 
genitalia slide mounts of the Coleophora to ascertain their 
identity and found one specimen of Coleophora potentillae 
Elisha, one C. caespititiella Zell., two C. alticolella Zell, and 
one C. lassella Staud. It appears to be the first county record 
of C. lassella for Kent. 

Also taken during the day was a specimen of the rather 
local Ancylis obtusana Haw. —E. S. BRADFORD, 82 Garston 
Lane, Garston, Watford, Herts., WD2 6QR. 


THE DATES OF PUBLICATION OF TUTT’S PTEROPHORINA OF 
BRITAIN. — Whilst browsing through some back issues of The 
Entomologist’s Record, I came across a note by T. Bainbrigge 
Fletcher (Vol. 50, 1938, p. 46) in connection with Tutt’s Pero- 
phorina of Great Britain, enquiring when the different parts 
of the book were issued. There does not seem to have been 
any response to this note. It may therefore be of interest to 
record that I recently came across a copy of this book, con- 
taining pencilled notes of the dates of publication, as follows:— 
Part I, pp. 1-24, November 1889. Part II, pp. 25-48, September 
1890. Part III, pp. 49-72, October 1891. Part IV, pp. 73-96, 
June 1892. Part V, pp. 97-120, March 1893. Part VI, pp. 121- 
144, January 1894. Part VII, pp. 145-161, February 1895. — 
C. L. NIssEN, Batiment F2, Appt. 271, “Résidence Beausé- 
jour’, ave. Clémenceau, 77100, Meaux, France. 


122 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


A Theory to account for the spread of the Orange 
Tip Butterfly in Northern England 


Professor E. Lees! 


In recent years there have been several reports of the 
Orange Tip butterfly, Anthocharis cardamines L., having 
extended its range in Northern England and Scotland (Garrad, 
1972; Long, 1979). These reports agree with my own obser- 
vations on the spread of this butterfly in Wharfedale, W. 
Yorks. over the period 1965-1979. During the early part of 
this period the Orange Tip appeared to be absent from much 
of Wharfedale: it certainly did not occur between Otley 
and the source of the river. Occasional sightings of the butter- 
fly occurred between 1968-1972 and since that year it has 
become increasingly common between Otley and Bolton 
Abbey and is continuing to extend its range up the dale to 
beyond Grassington. In the last two years the butterfly has 
been a common visitor to my garden in Menston during the 
second half of May and females laid their eggs on the flowers 
of Honesty, Lunaria biennis. 

It is always a matter of biological interst when a species 
suddenly extends its range, even though it may only be 
recovering territory which was lost at an earlier date. This 
seems to be the case with the Orange Tip. The habitats. 
which have been recolonised by A. cardamines in Wharfedale 
have not undergone marked changes in recent years, so it 
is tempting to seek an explanation for the extension in range 
of the species in terms of climate changes. As the Orange 
Tip has only one brood in the year, its numbers are particu- 
larly affected by the weather conditions during the single 
flight period. If the weather is cool and cloudy at this time, 
there will be fewer matings, fewer eggs deposited and the 
progeny for the following year will be correspondingly reduced. 
Perhaps the most significant deterioration in our climate 
within the two decades has been the marked fall in the mean 
temperature for the month of April, a deterioration which 
is well reflected in the data given in Table 1. 


Month | Mean for period! Mean Mean Mean 

1908-1977 1977 1978 1979 
April Hes lek G 6.4°C Bria ©: Ce 
May 10.6°C S A bag. G 10.8°C oe dal th 


Table 1. Mean temperatures for the months of April and May 
1977-1979, as compared with those of an earlier period, recorded at 
Bradford, W. Yorks. 

An April mean temperature of above7.0°C, such as was 
recorded at Bradford for the early decades of the present 


*School of Biological Sciences, University of Bradford. 


SPREAD OF THE ORANGE TIP BUTTERFLY IN N. ENGLAND 123 


century would probably allow the Orange Tip to emerge 
towards the end of the month. The weather in April on the 
eastern side of the Pennines has always been very changeable 
and years when the month has yielded a spell of several warm 
and sunny days have been very few. By May, however, the 
weather has improved to the point where, even in unfavour- 
able years, the month gives at least one spell of several warm 
sunny days and this is particularly true of the end of the 
month. 

Assuming that the recolonising of Wharfedale by the 
Orange Tip has taken place by butterflies migrating up the 
valley from the Vale of York, where the species has always 
been present, it is reasonable to supposet that any tendency 
for this to happen prior to 1968 was prevented by the 
unsettled April weather. Since 1970, however, the low April 
mean temperatures have delayed the emergence of the Orange 
Tip until May, even in the most climatically favoured parts 
of N. England. This has probably been advantageous to the 
species, for it has meant that the flight period of the species 
has coincided with one or more periods of warm, sunny 
weather. Under such conditions individual butterflies would 
migrate from the Vale of York up the valley of the Wharfe 
and establish themselves, employing a life-cycle geared to a 
May emergence of the imagines. The same sort of thing has 
obviously occurred in other parts of Northern England and 
Scotland. 


References 
Garrad, L. S. 1972. The Naturalist in The Isle of Man. David and 
Charles. 
Long, A. G. 1979. The Return of the Orange Tip. Ent. Rec. J. Var. 
91 (1) 16-17. (2/3) 42-45, (6) 158-161. 


Notes and Observations 


BADONNELIA TITEI PEARMAN (PSOCOPTERA, SPHAEROP- 
SOCIDAE) IN HUNTINGDONSHIRE; A SECOND BRITISH RECORD. 
— A single female of this very distinctive psocid was recently 
brought in for identification, collected on 24th February 1980 
by Mrs. R. Mason on a carrycot stored in a bedroom cupboard 
of a ten-year-old house at Hemingford Grey, Cambs. (TL 
300701) in the old county of Huntingdonshire (V.C. 31). This 
monotypic genus was provisionally described in 1953 by J. V. 
Pearman (Entomologist’s mon. Mag., 89: 262) following the 
discovery of a single female by Mr. G. E. Tite on an atlas in 
Tring Museum on 10th August 1953. A further seventeen 
specimens of both sexes were found in the museum during the 
next three years and Pearman published a well-illustrated full 
description in 1958 (Entomologist’s mon. Mag., 94: 48-52). 
He was of the opinion that this species normally overwinters 
in the egg stage but recorded ‘quite young nymphs in Septem- 
ber and a female in March’’. 


124 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


Although the male could be mistaken for a species of 
Liposcelis, the female is unique in possessing elytriform wings 
which envelope the body almost meeting mid-ventrally. These 
possess only two veins, one of which forms the lateral margin. 
The wing surfaces are covered with a fine network of meshes 
which gives them a somewhat pearled appearance at low mag- 
nification using incident light. 

On 4th March 1980 one of us (R.A.P.), accompanied by 
Mr. J. N. Greatorex-Davies, visited the house to search for 
additional specimens. Unfortunately the cupboard had been 
vacuumed and thoroughly cleaned at the time of the initial 
discovery and no Psocoptera were to be seen. However, when 
the adjacent carpet was pulled back a single female nymph, 
with partly developed wings, was found together with several 
Liposcelis simulans Broadhead. Further searching including 
examination of the loft failed to reveal any more specimens. 

T. W. New (1974 Handbk. Ident. Br. Insects, I, Pt. 7, 
p. 45) describes the status of this species as “‘possibly native, 
more probably introduced”. K. K. Giinther (1974, Die Tierwelt 
Deutschlands, 61 Staublause, Psocoptera, 314 pp.) records B. 
titei from England, Belgium, France and Switzerland and 
regards it as a photophobic, cavernicolous or synanthropic 
species. He lists it as living among stones, gravel, paper objects, 
books, guano, etc., in cellars, libraries, zoological laboratories 
and grottos. In Britain this species is probably best regarded 
as synanthropic although these captures in a private house 
approximately 70 km from the type locality raises interest in 
its distribution and occurrence in this country. — R. COLIN 
WELCH & R. A. PLANT, Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Monks 
Wood Experimental Station, Abbots Ripton, Huntingdon, 
Cambs. PE17 2LS. 


DEILEPHILA ELPENOR L. IN CENTRAL SCOTLAND. —: Accord- 
ing to ““The Moths and Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland”’ 
Vol. 9, the Elephant Hawk Moth is local in southern Scotland 
but it is at present increasing its range. During the summer of 
1979 this species was recorded from the following locations 
in central Scotland: — 

Sth July, Ford by Lochgilphead, Argyll, NR80, adult found 
dead by the roadside. 

a July, Helensburgh, Dumbartonshire, NS28, adult caught 
alive. 

11th August, Possil Marsh, Glasgow, NS57, one caterpillar. 
se August, Tillicoultry, Clackmannanshire, NS99, two cater- 
pillars. 

28th August, Finnieston, Glasgow, NS 56, one caterpillar. 

This species would appear to be quite well established in 
the Glasgow area perhaps due to the large amounts of Epilo- 
bium spp. growing on waste ground. Two further caterpillars 
were handed in to the museum during August from unrecorded 
localities in the Glasgow district. — IAIn MacGown, Natural 
History Department, Art Gallery and Museum, Kelvingrove, 
Glasgow G3 8AG. 


Current Literature 


British Tortricoid Moths. Tortricidae: Olethreutinae by J. D. 
Bradley, W. G. Tremewan and Arthur Smith, with colour 
illustrations by Brian Hargreaves. 4to., pp. vili + 336; 
54 text illustrations, 22 colour plates (of 500 figures) and 
21 monochrome plates (of 87 figures). The Ray Society, 
London 1979. Obtainable from the publications depart- 
ment, British Museum (Natural History). Price £40. 
This is in effect the second and final volume of the 

British Tortricoid moths, the first of which appeared in 1973 

and covered the Cochylidae and Tortricidae: Tortricinae. 

The present volume deals with the remaining 225 species and 

one sub-species of the Tortricoidea, that is the Tortricidae: 

Olethreutinae, including seven species believed to be casual 

or non-resident in the British Isles. 

The introductory matter includes a Preface and an 
Introduction consisting of a list of species of economic 
importance in the British Isles (totalling 49 species and 
including 24 of those treated in volume 1), and a list of the 
British species of Olethreutinae. Then follows the systematic 
part of the work (pp. 13-305) in which the description, biology 
and distribution are given of 221 of the Olethreutinae and a 
brief discussion of the remaining four doubtfully British or 
accidentally introduced species. Each description is followed 
by an account of the variation with, under the heading of 
‘comments’, a very useful summary of the more important 
distinguishing characters. Species are cross-referenced to the 
main textbooks: Barrett, Lepidoptera of the British Islands, 
vols. 10 and 11; Pierce and Metcalf, Genitalia of the Tortri- 
cidae; Meyrick, Revised Handbook of the British Lepidoptera, 
and Ford, Guide to the Smaller British Lepidoptera. The 
book is further documented by the addition of numerous 
other references in the text, referred to in a Bibliography of 
354 items (pp. 321-331). Finally, to complete the text of the 
work, there is an alphabetically arranged List of Larval 
Foodplants (pp. 306-320), and an index of Genera, Species 
and Forms (pp. 332-336). 

As in the previous volume, there are no specific or 
generic keys, so that the reader must depend on the illus- 
trations to determine his material. The coloured figures of 
the perfect insects are reproduced at approximately 2.4 
natural size. These were drawn by Brian Hargreaves with 
marvellous fidelity, but in the process of printing some have 
unfortunately suffered, though for purposes of indentification 
the majority are still very fine. 

Arthur Smith’s biological drawings in pencil of the 
foodplants and larval habitations must be seen to be believed, 
and their reproduction on the 21 monochrome plates is so 
good that they have lost little or nothing of their original 
perfection. These superb illustrations will be of great help in 
determination, asTortricoid species are often far more easily 


126 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I1/IV/V/80 


identifiable from the characteristic larval spinnings than from 
the larvae themselves. 

An important feature of the book are the text figures 
of the genitalia of the more critical species, originally drawn 
by Dr. Bradley and inked in by Tony Sutton. These have 
been executed with remarkable clarity, and the arrows 
showing the points of distinction are a notable refinement. 
Of special interest are the figures of the difficult Dichrorampha 
group. 

Only 1500 copies of volume 2 were printed as against 
some 4500 of volume 1, which fact partly explains the great 
difference in price: volume 1 being still obtainable at less 
than £20. Even so, the cost of production of volume 2 was 
heavily subsidised, mainly by a generous grant from the Royal 
Society and donations from industrial organisations. 

Paper, printing, and the general quality of the book, are 
of the usual high standard of the Ray Society publications, 
and the complete work in two volumes is one of the most 
splendid productions on the microlepidoptera that has ever 
appeared.—J.M.C.-H. 


African Insect Life by S. H. Skaife. Revised edition by John 
Ledger. 279 pp. 147 colour plates; 365 half-tone photos 
and drawings. Country Life £15. 

The late Dr. Skaife’s African Insect Life first appeared 
some 25 years ago and has long been the bible of entomologists 
and other naturalists working in the “Dark Country”. Now 
it is perhaps even better, with a wealth of the most superb 
photographs by Anthony Bannister. Apart from revising and 
updating Skaife’s text, Dr. John Ledger has incorporated two 
new chapters to “‘Skaife’’: one of them on methods of study, 
collecting, photography, etc., which have a universal appli- 
cation; the other on arthropod relatives, wherein is postulated 
the theory, now shared by many other taxonomists, that the 
Collembola (springtails), Thysanura, Diplura (bristletails) and 
Protura (Proturans) should be separated from the Insecta and 
afforded separate class status. The descriptive accounts of all 
the insect orders represented in Africa (thus shorn of the 
Apterygota! ) is detailed, informative and lucid, with separate 
short descriptions of the features of individual families (some 
with keys) and valuable references to further reading, both 
African and general. One of the merits of this new ‘“‘Skaife”’ 
is that while primarily an in-depth guide to many of the 
100,000 species found in the Subsaharan region, it may also 
be used as a general introduction to entomology, and as such 
should be on every serious student’s shelf. Errors would 
appear to be few, although the ‘“‘adult female glow-worm’’, 
illustrated on page 121, is obviously a larva, as indicated by 
its undifferentiated tarsi. ANTHONY WOOTTON. 


i 


PLATE X 


Bishop Skat Hoffmeyer. 


OBITUARY 


Bishop Skat Hoffmeyer, Denmark 
By Ove HokrGH-GULDBERG* 


It was originally intended that Baron Charles de Worms 
who was a close friend of the late bishop, should write this 
obituary. When he himself died only a few weeks later, the 
editor asked me to undertake the task. 

Dr. Skat Hoffmeyer was born in Copenhagen on 7th- 
December, 1891, and passed away on 3lst August, 1979, 
almost 88 years old. He spent his working life in Jutland, 
originally as vicar at Raarup, then as archdeacon at Aarhus 
before becoming bishop there from 1940 to 196]. 

It is remarkable that a life so full of quite different and 
demanding work should leave much time for the study and 
collection of butterflies and flowers. However, his ability, 
energy and interests were such already as a boy that his parents 
gave him books on butterflies for his tenth birthday, and at 
the age of 15 he caught the first Peribatodes manuelaria 
Herrich-Schaeffer in Denmark, a most remarkable catch. 

His huge collection of Danish Heterocera (Macrolepidop- 
tera) thus covers a period of over 70 years. It contains speci- 
mens from every region of Denmark and was prepared with a 
unique precision and sense of beauty. 

Butterfly collecting changed enormously during those 
years: before World War I he had to make do with a bicycle 
lamp with a small candle inside for his nightly expeditions. 
Then came kerosene stable lamps, carbide bicycle lights, and 
Petromaxes before the mercury quartz lamp was finally intro- 
duced. Similarly, he had to go by bicycle or train when he was 
young, before graduating to motor bikes and cars. Originally, 
people collected in isolation and there was little communi- 
cation among collectors; nowadays in Denmark alone there 
are five associations with hundreds of members exchanging 
experiences and information 
among collectors; nowadays in Denmark alone there are five 
associations with hundreds of members exchanging experiences 
and information. 

Skat Hoffmeyer spoke all main modern and classic 
European languages and quickly established contact with 
leading lepidopterists. Britain was particularly close to his 
heart. His contacts here included P. M. Allen, E. A. Cockayne, 
D. S. Fletcher, L. T. Ford, A. L. Goodson, J. W. Heslop 
Harrison, I. R. P. Heslop, S. N. A. Jacobs, A. Russell, W. H. 
T. Tams, M. Tweedie, and C. de Worms, not to mention 
Richard South whose books were a model for Skat Hoffmeyer’s 
own publications. 


* Stensballe 8700 Horsens, Denmark. 


128 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IV/V/80 


His European connections and his extensive knowledge of 
the literature enabled him to predict the discovery of new 
species in Denmark; he himself found many of these on the 
basis of his knowledge of their biology. He shared his know- 
ledge with others through almost 100** published papers, 
dealing with faunistics, subspecific problems, sibling species, 
melanism, ecology, and biology. With his close friend Sigfred 
Knudsen he wrote the major faunistic work, “De danske 
storsommerfugle og deres udbredelse i Nordsg-Ostersgom- 
raadet” (Danish Macrolepidoptera and Their Distribution in 
the North Sea-Baltic Areas). 

His special fields of interest included Zygaena diaphana 
Staudinger (ssp. hoffmeyeri Reiss), Amphipoea crinanensis 
(ssp jutlandica Hoffmeyer & Knudsen), and Heliothis maritima 
Graslin ssp septentrionalis Hoffmeyer. 

His knowledge was finally gathered in three works, “De 
danske spindere’” (Bombycids, 1948), “‘De danske ugler”’ 
(Noctuids, 1949), and ‘“‘De danske maalere” (Geometrids, 
1952). These books contain more than a thousand pages of 
text as well as many illustrations including excellent colour 
photographs of every species and numerous varieties. They 
have been reprinted several times. 

His object was to give a self-contained and concise des- 
cription of each Danish species, and he succeeded in this task 
in such a captivating manner and covering the subject so 
completely that these books have become the “bible” of 
Danish collectors. I believe that if they were translated, 
updated, and suitably adapted they would become equally 
significant in Britain. The bishop was proud when of all people 
an Englishman, Michael Tweedie, taught himself Danish in 
order to read these books. 

Skat Hoffmeyer was a co-founder of the Entomoligists’ 
Club in Aarhus. The club elected him a Life Member, an 
honour which was also accorded him by the Danish Lepidop- 
terist Association and the Natural History Association of 
Jutland. The recently established Natural History Museum in 
Aarhus owes him much: he was a Director and he founded 
its butterfly collections which includes thousands of genital 
specimens prepared by him. Finally he donated his own collec- 
tion to the museum. 

Butterflies were always close to his thinking. Once when 
he led a procession of clergymen in full regalia across a 
churchyard, he is said to have broken ranks when he sud- 
denly caught sight of the ‘““chumming-bird hawk moth”; he had 
his net hidden under his robes! 

Such was his way, full of fun, often ironical, enormously 
knowledgeable, ever helpful and interested. 

He was the doyen of Danish lepidopterists; we will all miss 
him. 


** For a complete bibliography of Dr. Skat Hoffmeyer’s works on 
lepidoptera, see “Flora og Fauna” 1979, p. 90. 


EXCHANGES AND WANTS 


For Sale—Run of the Record from July 1951 to December 1972. Clip- 
bound using ‘‘Veteran Simplex” system in 22 volumes. Complete, in perfect 
condition. £80.— Paul Sokoloff, 4 Steep Close, Orpington, Kent. Farn- 
borough 59034. 


Wanted for research collection: Reared Parasitic Hymenoptera. — Please 
contact Dr. M. R. Shaw, Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh EH1 1JF. 


For Sale —Barrett’s British Lepidoptera Illustrated. 11 Vols. complete. 
Offers over £500. — Tel. 01-360 6195. 


Wanted — Records of insects feeding on the leaves, stems and flowers of 
buddleia (Buddleia davidii) and records of insects visiting and feeding from 
the flowers. This introduced shrub is rapidly developing an associated insect 
fauna. The attraction of its flowers to butterflies is well-known, and I not 
only want to build up a picture of flower visitors but also a record of 
species feeding on other parts of the plant, particularly the leaves. Please 
include locality, date and the names of the species of insects. — Dr. D. F. 
Owen, 66 Scraptoft Lane, Leicester LES 1HU. 


THE ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 


AND JOURNAL OF VARIATION 
(Founded by J. W. TUTT on 15th April, 1890) 


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ALLEN, B.Sc.; Diptera: E. C. M. d’Assis-FoNnsECcA, F.R.E.S. 


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CONTENTS 


The Immigration of Lepidoptera to the British Isles in 1979. R. F. 
BRETHERTON and J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT AY ; 89 


Notes on the Behaviour of Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing siete 
Trogonoptera brookiana cheat ee Rissa in Sarawak. Dr. 


A. Lk. .PANCHEN))..: Ws a 98 
Butterflies in Eastern Switzerland, 1979. Dr. C. J. LUCKENS _... 103 
Precis archesia ee tis idee aaah a New BSR 

L. McLEOD .... 5, : 109 
The Rearing of Cheilosia paganus and C. aes Diptera: PREG 

dae). A. E. STUBBS ray 114 
Oxygastra curtisii (Dale, 1834) Haaeauee Ceutuiiaaes in Bourne- 

mouth, an Historical Note. S. C. S. BROWN ... ; : 118 
Leptophloeus clematidis (Erichson) oa arenes cileren in 

Suffolk. D. R. NASH ie bee pa Mg 120 
A Theory to account for the spread of the ce sects in 

Northern England. Professor E. LEES ... 122 


Notes and Observations: 


Digitivelva perlepidella Stn. N. F. HEAL BAe : 97 
Unusual Food of Ennomos fuscantaria Haw. G. M. HAGGETT 97 
Polygonia egea Cramer in Malta. A. VALLETTA _... as 97 
Apparent Colour Selectivity by iat aegeria L. when a cae 

at flowers. B. K. WEST ; 102 
Cnaemidophorus rhododactyla D. & S. J. D. CHADD ... OZ 
Coleophora trigeminella Fuchs. N. F. HEAL ... a 113 
Maruca testulalis Geyer in Wanstead Park. Lt. Col. A. M. 

EMME T ... By 5 113 
On being “Stared and Grinned at by the Vulgar” PNG Ge 

GREENWOOD . 117 
A Strange Method of coat a es M. J. WELLS 119 
Blair’s Shoulder-knot in Cornwall. C. HART ... ant diac 119 
Coleophora lassella Staud. in Kent. E. 8S. BRADFORD sae 121 
The Dates of Publication of Tutt’s Pterophorina of Britain. 

GUD NISSEN? 4-2 ue ae: oh: ie Bae bs 121 


Badonnelia titei Pearman (Psocoptera, Sphaeropsocidae) in 
Huntingdonshire; a Second British Record. R. C. WELCH 


and R. A. PLANT _.. 123 
Deilephila elpenor L. in Central Seattial I. MacGOWN _.... 124 
Current Literature se Ae, sah vor bse an aie 125 
Obituary: 
Bishop Skat Hoffmeyer, Denmark ... a, att Be ie 127 


The Butterflies and Moths of Kent, Volume 3. J. M. CHALMERS- 
HUNT siMaH AT gina gn nao SP Aa 


Printed by Charles Phipps Ltd., 225 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4HL 


IL. 92, No. 6 


June, 1980 ISSN 0013-8916 


LEER ES, ae 
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PLATE XI 


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Fige5 C.ealnifoliae Barasch 


Cases of the Coleophora milvipennis group 
according to Toll (1962) 


129 


Coleophora adjectella Herrich-Schaffer, 1861 
(Lepidoptera: Coleophoridae) — a species newly 
recognised as British. 


By Lt. Col. A. M. Emmet, M.B.E., T.D., M.A., F.R.E.S.* 


Summary. Coleophora adjectella is added to the British 
list on the evidence of specimens reared from larvae collected 
at Benfleet, Essex in October, 1967 and information derived 
from a paper by Karsholt & Nielsen (1978). The history and 
status of the Coleophora milvipennis group in Britain is 
reviewed. 


The Coleophora milvipennis group as now understood 
consists of five closely related and very similar species: — 
C. milvipennis Zeller, 1839, C. badiipennella (Duponchel, 
1843), C. limosipennella (Duponchel, 1843), C. adjectella 
Herrich-Schaffer, 1861 and C. alnifoliae Barasch, 1934. Their 
larval foodplants and feeding times are given below. C. badii- 
pennella and C. limosipennella have been recognised as 
British since the middle of the nineteenth century (Stainton, 
1854a; 1855). All the other three species have probably been 
collected in this country for as long a period, but C. 
milvipennis and C. alnifoliae were determined as C. limosi- 
pennella and C. adjectella as C. badiipennella. The situation 
was further complicated because the less closely related C. 
trigeminella Fuchs, 1881 was also confounded with C. badii- 
pennella until it was recognised and introduced to the British 
list by Bankes (1912). 

The earlier continental entomologists were as confused 
as their British counterparts until the present century when 
they unravelled the problem. C. adjectella, with which we 
are chiefly concerned here, was correctly described as a 
distinct species by Herrich-Schaffer (1861), but was then 
considered to be conspecific with C. badiipennella until Hering 
(1937: 410) restored it to specific rank. Hering (1957) gives 
the five species as they are here presented and their cases 
were figured by Toll (1962); his figures are reproduced on 
Plate XI. 

British entomologists have been slow to follow the 
continental lead. The first attempt to add a third species to 
the traditional two was made by Barrett (1902). In October, 
1900 W. C. Boyd (cousin of the better known T. Boyd) found 
two larval cases on Prunus spinosa during a shooting party 
at Danbury, Essex. He sleeved the cases out and reared a 
single moth in 1901. At first he determined it as C. badiipen- 
nella but was not satisfied and submitted it to Barrett for his 
opinion. Barrett compared the moth and its case with the 
continental material in the Frey collection at the British 
Museum (Natural History) and concluded that it was C. 
milvipennis which he accordingly introduced as a species new 


* Labrey Cottage, Victoria Gardens, Saffron Walden, Essex. 


130 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI/80 


to the British list. He pointed out, however, that the known 
foodplant of C. milvipennis was Betula and not Prunus. 
Tutt (1902: 132) refers to Boyd’s blackthorn specimen, stating 
that it “‘has been identified by Barrett as the birch-feeding 
Coleophora milvipennis’’, implying, perhaps, some degree of 
reservation. However, he continues to describe elsewhere the 
birch-feeding members of the group as C. limosipennella 
(1905: 58-59; 1908: 71 and 92). In the 1905 reference, where 
he is evidently describing C. alnifoliae, he states that the 
case on birch is ““much more fragile and slender” than that 
on elm. The 1908 references describe C. milvipennis. 

In the 1905 reference, Tutt incorrectly states that the 
case of C. badiipennella is three-valved. Possibly he had a 
case of C. trigeminella in front of him when he wrote, for 
Bankes, (Joc. cit.) found the two species intermingled in the 
collections at the British Museum (Natural History). This 
led Bankes to examine the C. badiipennella there carefully 
and he concluded that the continental specimens in the Zeller 
and Hofmann collections were not conspecific with the 
British. The continental specimens, where a foodplant was 
cited, were reared from blackthorn whereas the British were 
from elm; he thought the British specimens to have their 
ground colour distinctly darker. He adds, “It is noteworthy 
that the only continental specimens I have seen, precisely 
identical with our British ones, are ten, standing in the 
Stainton Continental series of badiipennella and labelled as 
bred in 1870 from ‘Elm, Paris, Ragonot’. Neither Bankes 
nor any of his contemporaries pursued his correct obser- 
vations any further and, the Boyd specimen being by now 
forgotten, we in this country continued to treat the five species 
as if they were two. 

The next British entomologist to study the problem was 
Professor Waters (1927; 1928). Though he followed current 
doctrine and supposed he had only two species, we can tell 
from his text that he found all five in the Oxford district. 
He was en excellent field-worker and was quick to see that 
there were more than two behaviour patterns. He sought a 
solution by accepting a suggestion made by Stainton (1859b: 
104) that the larval life cycle extended over two years. If 
the larvae had two seasons in which to complete their growth 
but needed only about two months of active feeding to do so, 
it was likely enough that some would feed mainly in spring, 
others in summer and yet others in autumn. He concludes, 
“Several difficulties are thus explained away — the occurrence 
of larvae at all times in the season, the apparent irregularity 
in the appearance of the species and the contradictory state- 
ments made on the subject by different authors”. Only one 
more summer remained before Waters’ untimely death robbed 
us of our most brilliant microlepidopterist in this century. 
He had not solved the problem of the C. milvipennis group 
but, unlike his predecessors, he had appreciated that a 
problem existed. He had close contacts with leading European 


(LEPIDOPTERA: COLEOPHORIDAE), RECOGNISED BRITISH 131 


entomologists, including Hering, and as an accomplished 
linguist (he was Professor of Romance Languages at Oxford 
University) communication presented him with no problem. 
Had he lived, research in this country would certainly have 
kept pace with that on the Continent. 

The next contribution was made by Meyrick (1928). He 
wrote. “C. milvipennis Zell. has been recorded as British 
from a single specimen, which, however, seems to have been 
wrongly determined’. He ascribed it accordingly to C. badii- 
pennella whose foodplants he gave as “elm and blackthorn”’. 
In doing so he was following a long tradition. In one and the 
same year, Stainton had given the foodplants of C. badiipen- 
nella as elm (1859a: 384) and elm and blackthorn (1959b: 
26-28; 32). In the latter work he was probably incorporating 
material from his European collaborators, Zeller and Frey, 
for, as we have seen above, most supposed continental 
examples of that species had been reared from Prunus spinosa. 
Morris (1872) mentions only elm but Meyrick in his first 
edition (1895) had already followed Stainton in adding 
blackthorn. Waters had determined the specimen he had 
reared from blackthorn as C. badiipennella, and he and 
Meyrick corresponded with each other. Meyrick, therefore, 
acted correctly in the light of the information available to 
him, but we see that, in spite of the misgivings expressed by 
Barrett, Bankes and Waters, we are no further advanced in 
1928 than we were in 1859. 

Mr. R. W. J. Uffen next turned his attention to the 
Coleophoridae and the unravelling of the tangle began. By 
the time Heslop (1961) produced his check-list, we find that 
C. milvipennis and C. alnifoliae are included and they also 
feature in Kloet & Hincks (1972) and Bradley & Fletcher 
(1979). However, they sidled into the British list unannounced. 
Ellerton (1970) writes, “Coleophora alnifoliae Barasch. Mr. 
R. W. J. Uffen’s original discovery of this species, and the 
next [C. milvipennis], remains unpublished because of doubt 
of their distinctness”. Here I join issue with my friend: 
Stainton’s practice of airing his difficulties and inviting the 
collaboration of his contemporaries in seeking a solution is 
to be preferred. As the result all that British entomologists 
know of these two species is what they have picked up on 
the bush telegraph. 

We now come to my own part in this saga. On the 20th 
of October, 1967 I was collecting at South Benfleet, Essex. 
Being anxious to add C. badiipennella to my collection, I 
took a number of its cases from the elms. Next I turned 
my attention to the blackthorns, where I also found cases 
of what I assumed to be the same species. Thinking ahead 
to the problem of overwintering and remembering that we 
had blackthorn but not elm in the garden, I returned the 
elm cases to their trees and took home and sleeved out the 
ones I had found on blackthorn. Most of the larvae survived 
the winter and completed their feeding in the spring. Eight 


132 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI1/80 


adults emerged in July, 1968 and I duly placed them, with 
one of their cases, in my collection as C. badiipennella. I 
added a ninth in 1971 from a spring larva, also found at 
Benfleet. 

It may seem odd, but my first doubts over whether the 
elm and blackthorn-feeders were one and the same species 
arose out of my study of the Nepticulidae. On the Ist of 
September, 1974, once more at Benfleet, I came across 
unfamiliar gallery mines in leaves of elm. At first I thought 
I had come across a new nepticulid and then a new Buc- 
culatrix, and was rather disappointed when the mystery larvae 
excised cases and I realised that all I had found was the 
early feeding of C. badiipennella. I thought it strange that 
I had never seen similar mines on blackthorn, and I have 
paid particular attention to that plant at Benfleet, both before 
and since. It was there that I discovered Ectoedemia spinosella 
(Joannis) (Emmet, 1970) and, more recently, that Paul John- 
son and I studied the hitherto unknown pre-hibernation 
history of Paraswammerdamia spiniella (Hibner) (Emmet, 
1976). If ever blackthorns have been looked at hard by an 
entomologist, they are those at Benfleet and I can say with 
confidence that the coleophorid on Prunus does not make 
an early mine which is similar to that of its counterpart 
on Ulmus. 

The final piece of the jigsaw puzzle fell into place when, 
after receiving a letter from Mr. Ole Karsholt of Denmark 
Suggesting an interchange of ‘“‘separates’”’ and after the ex- 
change had taken place, I found myself in possession of a 
paper (Karsholt & Nielsen, 1978) which included a review 
of the Coleophora milvipennis group in Denmark. In it there 
was a description of a species I had never even heard of, 
Coleophora adjectella, whose foodplant was Prunus spinosa. 
In a flash I realised that the problem was solved. The paper 
contains figures of the genitalia of each sex of all the species 
and keys based on the male and female genitalia. I took my 
series, together with the paper, to the British Museum 
(Natural History), where Dr. J. D. Bradley dissected a male 
and female and pronounced that they were indeed C. adjec- 
tella. We looked out the Boyd specimen and placed it, 
together with my two dissected moths, in the British collection 
over the appropriate label. Waters’ specimen in the Hope 
Department of Entomology at Oxford University should 
likewise be relabelled. He collected the larva on the 6th or 
7th of October, 1926 at Shabbington Wood, Buckinghamshire 
and the moth emerged on the 10th of July, 1927. There may 
well be other specimens of C. adjectella in British collections, 
but I do not know of them. 

I do. however, know of two other localities. On the 11th 
of September, 1977 I was with Raymond Uffen at Stow Maries 
Halt Nature Reserve, near Maldon, Essex when he found a 
case; a few days later, on the 18th of September, when we 
were both collecting with a group of entomologists in the 


(LEPIDOPTERA: COLEOPHORIDAE), RECOGNISED BRITISH 133 


Isle of Wight, I found another, which I gave to Raymond, 
at Newton Ranges. It is, therefore, known already from vice- 
counties 10, 18 and 24. Hering (1957) describes it as a rare 
species and this seems to be true in Britain too. Karsholt & 
Nielsen (1978) introduced it as new to the Danish list. 

I shall now give a brief account of the five species. Since 
the adults cannot be separated reliably on superficial charac- 
ters, I shall refer the reader to Meyrick (1928) for the 
description of the common wing pattern; it is, however, 
worth while remembering that Bankes found the forewing 
in C. badiipennella to be darker than in C. adjectella. C. 
milvipennis, C. limosipennella and C. alnifoliae are larger 
species (wingspan 10-14 mm.), where as C. badiipennella and 
C. adjectella are smaller (wingspan 8-10 mm.). 

Toll’s figures of the larval cases should prove useful. His 
figure of C. adjectella is taken from Hering (1957), perhaps 
indicating that it is rare or hard to obtain in Poland. Waters 
(1928) draws attention to the somewhat truncate anal end of 
the case. Most examples I have seen of the case of C. badit- 
pennella have the oral orifice bent over more distinctly in 
relation to the tube and the ‘“‘neck’’ more strongly developed, 
as in the figure of C. limosipenneila. Some cases of C. limosi- 
pennella are broader in relation to their length than the one 
figured. The depicted case of C. alnifoliae is probably 
constructed from a mined alder leaf. In Britain the usual 
foodplant is birch and then the case is not much larger than 
that of C. milvipennis. All the cases are bivalved and are 
usually excised from the margin of the leaf, hence showing 
its serrations. 

C. limosipennella. Adult in June; wingspan 11-13 mm. Larva 
on Ulmus, monophagus. It appears in July, sometimes in 
large aggregations and principally on saplings, often those 
growing in hedgerows. Stainton (1859b: 102) wrote, ““The 
young larva of this species has not yet been observed; probably 
it may have escaped notice on account of the difficulty there 
may be in distinguishing it among the multitudes of larvae 
of Fuscedinella [C. serratella (Linnaeus)].”’ Suprisingly, this 
remained true for another 120 years and in Emmet (1979: 
81) Raymond Uffen wrote, ‘Small larvae may be expected 
to occur in autumn, but have not been found’’: that is, until 
a week after the publication of these words. On the Ist of 
November my wife and I were making records for the forth- 
coming list of Essex Microlepidoptera at Purfleet, beside the 
Thames estuary. There she picked a spray of elm which 
revealed the whole prehibernation history of two larvae. The 
ova were not visible but apparently had been laid in the 
angle of the midrib and a vein, where they were concealed 
by the hairs which fringe the midrib. The mine is very much 
smaller than that of C. badiipennella, being about 4.0-5.0 mm. 
long and 1.0 mm. wide, directed outwards alongside a vein. 
Most of the frass is ejected through a hole in the underside 
but remains adhering to the lower surface of the leaf. The 


134 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI/80 


first case is excised from the distal end of the mine. It is 
very small, measuring only about 2.0 X 1.0 mm., oval in 
shape and bivalved; the neck is weakly developed and the 
mouth angle about 20°. The larvae feed only briefly in their 
first case, still on their first leaf, before excising the second 
case; this is taken from a mine in the centre of the leaf with 
the first case left adhering to the edge of the cut-out, in the 
example I studied one on the upperside and the other on the 
underside. The second case is similar in pattern to the final 
case but very much smaller, being, in fact, hardly larger 
than the first case of C. badiipennella. It was not possible 
to determine which of the mines were made before and which 
were made after the excision of the second case, but if any 
feeding at all took place after this event, it was minimal. 
The larvae had then fixed themselves for overwintering on 
the twig near the base of the petiole of the leaf on which 
they had fed; each had moved, in fact, less than two inches 
from the presumed position of the ovum. A second leaf 
picked from the same hedgrow sapling told the same story. 
The main differences from C. badiipennella are the smaller 
mine, the ejection of frass, the absence of silk within the 
mine, the much smaller first case and the fixation for 
overwintering in an early instar. There is no possibility of 
confusing the early case of C. limosipennella with that of 
C. serratella, for a description of which see Raymond Uffen’s 
introductory note to the serratella group (Emmet, 1979: 80). 
It is now certain that the life cycle lasts two years. There is 
still a gap in our knowledge of the larval habits in spring; 
the larvae make an apparently sudden appearance on the 
elms in their final cases in midsummer, when their large 
mines are very conspicuous. The full-grown larva then 
Overwinters a second time, generally low down. I kept a 
colony at Saffron Walden under observation in 1964-1965. 
When the cases had been fixed for the winter, I marked 
their position by tying snippets of red string round the 
branches. In early spring gipsies camped on the precise spot 
and the smoke from their fire killed or drove away nearly 
all the larvae! 

C. badiipennella. Adult in June; wingspan 8-10 mm. Larva 
mainly, if not solely, on Ulmus. However, the figure in the 
original description (Duponchel, 1843: Pl. 78, fig. 14) is 
stated to have been made from a moth reared from Acer. 
Stainton (1859b: 30) recorded it on Fraxinus as well as 
Ulmus, but Bankes (1912) wondered whether the records on 
Fraxinus were not referable to C. trigeminella. The early 
mine has been mentioned above. It is long for that of a 
coleophorid, generally follows a vein outwards and has the 
early part almost filled with frass. The later part, when the 
mine is held up to the light, looks brownish and is slightly 
opaque, no doubt as a result of being lightly spun with silk. 
The case itself, cut from the distal end of the mine, is, of 
course, heavily silk-lined. The larvae feed up in the autumn 


(LEPIDOPTERA: COLEOPHORIDAE), RECOGNISED BRITISH 135 


and normally overwinter full-fed. Possibly some larvae feed 
again in the spring, but reports to this effect may be due to 
confusion with C. adjectella. Final case 5-6 mm. long, the 
smallest of the group. 

C. adjectella. Adult in July; wingspan 8-10 mm. Larva on 
Prunus spinosa, possibly monophagus but Hering (1957) also 
gives Crataegus. Overwinters half-fed and completes its 
growth in the spring. Mr. R. Fairclough and I collected 
several larvae at Benfleet on the Ist of October, 1979. Some 
were still in their first cases; these were small, flat and 
almost rectangular, and were fixed vertically to the leaves. 
I found excisions on the margin of leaves corresponding to 
this shape, but there was no preliminary mine or positive 
evidence that these were the source of the first case. The 
early stages are well described by Waters (1928). Waters 
gives the length of the final case at 4.5-5.0 mm.; Karsholt 
& Nielsen state that it is about 8 mm. long; my own mounted 
example measures 7 mm. Though variable, it is the second 
smallest of the group. 

C. milvipennis. Adult in June; wingspan 10-13mm. Larva on 
Betula but Karsholt & Nielsen give Alnus, Carpinus, Corylus 
and Myrica as additional foodplants. Alder-feeding larvae 
received by Stainton on the 23rd of August, 1853 may have 
been this species (Stainton, 1854b: 133). Feeds in the autumn 
and normally overwinters full-fed; records of its feeding 
again in the spring may be due to confusion with C. alni- 
foliae or may be of parasitised larvae, which suffer from 
induced starvation and therefore behave abnormally (cf. 
Tutt, 1905: 128 on C. fuscocuprella Herrich-Schaffer). When 
rearing this species I have never given my larvae the 
opportunity to feed again and the adults have emerged 
satisfactorily. The larvae are nomadic; their feeding-places 
are often conspicuous on birches but no cases are to be found 
nearby. For this reason I have found it best to search on 
the smallest saplings where their range of movement is 
perforce restricted. 

C. alnifoliae. Adult in late June to August; wingspan, 
according to Karsholt & Nielsen 11-14 mm., which is larger 
than supposed specimens reared in Britain from _ birch. 
Karsholt & Nielsen give Alnus as the only foodplant but 
Hering (1957) adds Betula. So far in this paper I have been 
following the little English tradition there is and have treated 
the material that feeds on birch in spring as C. alnifoliae, 
but now it is time to point out that this may not be correct. 
Newton (1979) expresses doubt and he has reared adults 
from both foodplants.I am at a disadvantage, never having 
found cases on alder. The Danish authors give the length 
of the case of C. alnifoliae as 10-13 mm., but cases on birch 
do not exceed 10 mm. Newton also draws attention to this 
dfference in size, and adds that the cases on birch are 
inclined at a steeper angle to the leaf. I have found the cases 
on birch in a number of places and notably at Barton Mills 


136 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI1/80 


in Suffolk. Having already noted their presence, I went 
there with Raymond Uffen and Paul Johnson on the 31st of 
May, 1976 and we collected many larvae. From these, I 
reared 15 moths between the 21st of June and the 2nd of 
July (it was an early season), and no doubt the others each 
bred a series. More usually the larvae are found singly or in 
small numbers. I can see no superficial difference between 
my ‘“‘C. alnifoliae’ and the C. milvipennis I have reared 
from larvae that completed their feeding in the autumn. 
Newton, however, found that the alder-feeding specimens 
were ferruginous brown, whereas those from birch were 
light brown. There seem to be three possibilities. 

(1) The birch-feeding larvae are C. alnifoliae but feed 
in smaller cases and produce smaller, paler moths than those 
on alder. This can be regarded as the currently orthodox 
British opinion. 

(2) They are C. milvipennis, which has two alternative 
larval time-cycles, one in which the larvae feed up in the 
autumn, and the other in which they overwinter in an early 
instar and complete their growth in the spring. 

(3) The alder- and birch-feeders constitute two distinct 
species, the latter being as yet unamed. 

My own guess is that the truth lies somewhere between 
(2) and (3). I doubt whether the two time-cycles are to be 
found in the offspring of the same female. I know of five 
localities in Essex for birch-feeding “‘C. alnifoliae” and three 
for C. milvipennis, but have found both at only one site. 
This suggests that the two are normally allopatric. Is it not 
possible that this is an example of species differentiation in 
the making? I hope some entomologist with the scientific 
training and skills which I lack will take up this problem 
which ought not to present great difficulty. I could probably 
provide him with living birch-feeding “‘C. alnifoliae’’ but not, 
on my present knowledge of distribution, with material from 
alder. Pending such research, I propose diffidently to adhere 
to possibility (1) above. This seems also to be the standpoint 
of Chalmers-Hunt (1975). 

The keys to the female and male genitalia which follow 
are those of Karsholt & Nielsen, reproduced with their kind 
permission. I am most grateful to Dr. K. Sattler who has 
translated them from the Danish. He has also made one or 
two modifications after consultation with the Danish authors. 
The genitalia are figured by Karsholt & Nielsen (1978) and 
the references to their figures are retained for the benefit of 
readers who use the two papers in conjunction. 


Key to the Coleophora milvipennis group based on 
female genitalia 


1 Sternum VIII with short spines; signum a short thorn 
without base plate (Fig. 22)nae ; . C. adjectella 
— Sternum VIII without spines; signum ue of thorn 
on base plate (Figs. 21, 23-25) . : : ae? 


(LEPIDOPTERA: COLEOPHORIDAE), RECOGNISED BRITISH 137 


2 Sternum VIII with distinct, emphasised, continuous, curved 
border between anterior strongly sclerotized part and 
posterior part; signum a straight thorn without teeth 
(Fig. 23) . C. alnifoliae 

— Sternum VIII without ‘curved, continuous edge; thorn of 
signum with teeth along one side (Figs. 21, 24, oe 


3 Ostium bursae. with ventral lobe bearing isolated ey 
posterior part of ductus bursae narrow, with parallel 


margins, without spines (Fig. 25) . . C. badiipennella 
— Ostium bursae without ventral lobe; posterior part of 
ductus bursae baggy, with spines (Figs. 21, 24) 4 


4 Sternum VIII evenly sclerotized; base plate of signum 
small, irregular; thorns of varying length but always 
strong and thick (Fig. 21) . C. limosipennella 

— Sternum VIII with strongly sclerotized folds laterally and 
in a nearly square field anterior to ostium bursae; signum 
composed of large, round base plate with irregular margin 
and long, slender thorn (Fig. 24) C. milvipennis 


Key to the Coleophora milvipennis group based on 
male genitalia 


1 Aedaegus with distinct conical or club-shaped cornutus 
which bears numerous small spines (Figs. 18,19) D 
— Aedeagus with group of poorly defined shorter or nee 
spines (Figs. 15-17) : 
2 Valvula overlaps upper margin “of sacculus (Fig. 18) 
C. alnifoliae 
-- Valvula reaches only middle of valva (Fig. 19) 
G, badiipennella 
3 Pair of distal tips on apex of sacculus very close together 
(Fig. 15) . . C. limosipennella 
- Pair of distal tips on “apex of sacculus clearly ae 
(Figs. 16, 17) ] 
4 Valvula extends at most half across valva (Fig. 16) 
: C. adjectella 
- Valvula extends more than half across valva (Fig. 17) 
C. milvipennis 


References 


Bankes, E. R., 1912. Occurrence in England of Coleophora trigemi- 
nella Fuchs, a species new to the British list, with notes on C. 
kroneella Fuchs and C. badiipennella Dup. Entomologist’s mon. 
Mag. 48: 51-56. 

Barrett, C. G., 1902. Coleophora milvipennis, Zeller, new to Britain. 
Ibid. 38: 79-80. 

Bradley, J. D. & Fletcher, D. S., 1979. A recorder’s log book or label 
list of British butterflies and moths, 136 pp. London. 

Chalmers-Hunt, J. M., 1975. The 1974 presidential address: Notes on 
ie Coleophoridae. Proc. Trans. Br. ent. nat. Hist. Soc., 7: 74-87, 

pls. 


138 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/V1/80 


Duponchel, A. J., 1843. Histoire naturelle des Lépidoptéres de France, 
Supplement 4. Paris. 

Ellerton, J., 1970. Microlepidoptera added to the British list since 
L. T. Ford’s review. Proc. Trans. Br. ent. nat. Hist. Soc., 3: 31-41. 

Emmet, A.M., 1970. Stigmella spinosella Joannis (Lep. Nepticulidae); 
a species new to Britain. Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var., 82: 121-123. 

, 1976. The early stages of two species of Yponomeutidae. 
Ibid. 88: 218-219. 

(ed.), 1979. A field guide to the smaller British Lepi- 
doptera, 271 pp. London. 

Hering, E. M., 1935-1937. Die Blattminen Mittel - und Nordeuropas 
xii, 631 pp., 7 pls. Neubrandenburg. 

, 1957. Bestimmungstabellen der Blattminen von Europa, 
1 and 2, 1185 pp., 3, 221 pp., 725 figs. ’s-Gravenhage. 

Herich-Schaffer, G. A. W., 1861. Revision der Europaischen Schmetter- 
lingsfauna. KorrespBl. Samml. Ins. 2: 142-144. 

Heslop, I. R. P., 1961. Revised indexed check-list of the British 
Lepidoptera, Part 3 — Tineoidea and Nepticuloidea section. 
Entomologist’s Gaz. 12: 199-230. 

Karsholt, O. & Nielsen, E. S., 1978. Remarks on microlepidoptera new 
to the Danish fauna, with a review of the Coleophora milvipennis 
group (Lepidoptera). In Danish: English summary. Ent. Meddr. 
46: 1-16, 34 figs. 

Kloet, G. S. & Hincks, W. D., 1972. A check-list of British insects 
(edn. 2), Lepidoptera. Handbk Ident. Br. Insects 11(2), vii, 153 


pp. London. 
Meyrick, E., 1895. A handbook of British Lepidoptera, vi, 843 pp. 
London. 


, 1928. A revised handbook of British Lepidoptera, vi 914 
pp. London. 

Morris, F. O., 1872. A natural history of British moths, 4, iv, 321 pp., 
36 col. pls. London. 

Newton, J., 1979. Notes on the Coleophoridae. Entomologist’s Rec. J. 
Var., 91: 234-236. 

Stainton, H. T., 1854a. Insecta Britannica, Tineina, 313 pp. London. 

——_—_—_———., 1854b. The entomologist’s companion, viii, 142 pp. 
London. 

, 1855. New British species in 1854. Entomologist’s 
Annu. 1855: 40-50. 

———__—_——., 1859a. A manual of British butterflies and moths, 2, 
xi, 480 pp. London. 

——______—.,1859b. The natural history of the Tineina, 4, vii, 292 
pp. 8 col. pls. London. 

Toll, S., 1962. Materialien zur Kenntnis der palaarktischen Arten der 
Familie Coleophoridae (Lepidoptera). Acta zool. cracov. 7: 577- 
719, 133 pls. 

Tutt, J. W., 1902-1908. Practical hints for the field lepidopterist, 1-3. 
London. (Vol. 2, 1902; Vol. 3, 1905; Vol. 1 (2nd edn.), 1908). 

Waters, E. R. G., 1927. Tineina in the Oxford district, 7. Coleo- 
phorinae. Entomologist’s mon. Mag., 63: 69-75; 99-102. 

, 1928. Notes on the Coleophorinae. Ibid. 64: 182-184. 


A NEw LOCALITY FOR YPONOMEUTA IRRORELLA (HBN.) 
IN KenT. — At the meeting of Kent lepidopterists at Maid- 
stone Museum on March 22nd this year, I took along a 
selection of micros I had not identified, and among them the 
Editor confirmed that I had two specimens of Y. irrorella 
from a locality hitherto unknown for this very local species. 
I had beaten them from a hedgerow above the Old Chalk Pit 
between Burham and Wouldham (TQ 72/63) on June 2\1st 
oe — ALFRED J. BUTCHER, 28, The Fairway, Rochester, 

ent. 


(LEPIDOPTERA: COLEOPHORIDAE), RECOGNISED BRITISH 139 


Changes since 1900 in the distribution of butterflies 
in Yorkshire and elsewhere in the north of England. 


By S. M. JACKSON * 


Porritt’s list of Yorkshire Lepidoptera (1903) includes 
48 species of butterfly, but the records of two of these — 
Papilio machaon Linn. dating back to 1803 and Leptidea 
sinapis (Linn.) from the nineteeth century — seem to refer 
to strays. Of the 46 species which remain if these are omitted, 
only 35 or 36 are known to be present today, and not all 
these are resident. 

In the postwar years from 1945 to 1950 there was a 
welcome increase in species; Polygonia c-album (Linn.), 
Argynnis aglaja (Linn.), Celastrina argiolus (Linn.), Callo- 
phrys rubi (Linn.) and Gonepteryx rhamni (Linn.) all became 
more plentiful or returned after a long absence. However, 
by 1950 P. c-album and C. argiolus had already disappeared 
again from most localities and by the end of the 1950s and 
in the early 1960s other species such as Pararge aegeria 
(Linn.), Hipparchia semele (Linn.), G. rhamni, A. aglaja 
and Boloria selene (D. & S.) had shown a marked decline 
over most of Yorkshire.The 1970s saw a remarkable recovery 
by many Lepidoptera, especially the moths; some appeared 
in Yorkshire for the first time and others returned after a 
long interaval. I may deal with the moths in a future article. 

Some species show alternate advance and _ recession. 
G. rhamni, for example, was frequent up to 1956, then 
became scarce, was common again in 1976 but by 1979 was 
once more rare and confined to southern Yorkshire. In 
general, however, the picture is one of decline. For example, 
at Bishop Wood, one of the best-known collecting grounds 
near Selby, Boloria euphrosyne (Linn.), Argynnis paphia 
(Linn.), A. adippe (D. & S.), Quercusia quercus (Linn.), 
Pyronia tithonus (Linn.) and Aphantopus hyperantus (L.) were 
all present in the last century but have since disappeared. 
There is no doubt that the almost clear felling of the wood 
in the 1914-1918 war exterminated most of the butterflies, 
yet some of the local moths such as Cerastis leucographa 
(D. & S.), Orthosia populeti (Fabr.), Rheumaptera hastata 
(Linn.) and Apocheima hispidaria (D. & S.) still survive. 

Of the “brown”’ butterflies, Lasiommata megera (Linn.) 
continues to be common and has extended its range in 
western Yorkshire. P. aegeria spread in the 1950s but has 
now disappeared from the woods west of Selby and those 
near Womersley. It has not been seen at its best-known 
locality, Brocodale Woods, Wentbridge, since 1970. It now 
seems to be confined to part of the magnesium limestone 
belt east of Leeds where I have recently seen it in only two 
places, one between Fairburn and Ledsham where it is still 
common, and the other a few miles further north where it 
* 22 Armoury Road, Selby, N. Yorks. 


140 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI1/80 


is scarce. This decline in Yorkshire is strange as in most 
parts of England it holds its own or is increasing its range. 
H. semele likewise became more common in the 1950s and 
a colony flourished in a sandy area near Selby from 1955 to 
1958. In recent years it has been recorded only in two 
localities on the chalk in eastern Yorkshire, Burdale and 
Kipling Cotes, but I have not seen it even there in the last 
few years. 

However, on the brighter side two species, P. tithonus 
and Aphantopus hyperantus (Linn.), have shown a remarkable 
extension. P. tithonus was for many years confined to three 
areas in Yorkshire: in Holderness from Hull to the coast 
at Spurn Head; around Market Weighton, especially along 
the canal; and in the Throne-Hatfield district of southern 
Yorkshire. Expansion seems to have started in about 1953 
when C. R. Haxby recorded a specimen on Skipwith Common. 
By 1979 it had colonised a number of localities from Torne 
Bridge, Barnby Dun and Askern north-east of Doncaster, 
through the Selby district to its old stronghold at Market 
Weighton. A. hyperantus is showing a similar but less spec- 
tacular extension. It has long been common in eastern 
Yorkshire, on the chalk wolds and on Strensall Common, 
but in nearly fifty years of collecting I had never known it 
within twenty miles of Selby until 1976, when I saw it at 
Rawcliffe, about ten miles south of the town. Since then it 
has continued to spread and in 1979 swarmed, far out- 
numbering M. jurtina, along a dyke only three and a half 
miles south of Selby. It.is to be hoped that the recent digging 
out of these dykes as a result of a new pit does not adversely 
affect P. tithonus and A. hyperantus, both of which have a 
liking for the sides of dykes in Yorkshire. A. hyperantus was 
also noted in Leyburn in north-west Yorkshire in 1979. 

I am afraid the position of the fritillaries is not good. 
There were sporadic Yorkshire records for A. paphia during 
the 1930s and 1940s, and one was taken in 1953 by G. Hyde 
at Crowle, just over the border in Lincolnshire. There were 
likewise occasional records of A. adippe, a species which is 
still frequent in Cumbria. Euphydryas aurinia (Rott.) has 
probably been extinct in the country since 1900. It used to 
occur at Askham Bag and was recorded from Selby prior to 
1883; possibly this was on Selby Common, where there is 
still a marshy field covered with devil’s-bit scabious, the only 
remaining haunt in the district of Adscita statices (Linn.). 
FE. aurinia continued to occur into the 1940s at Skelling- 
thorpe, near Market Rasen in Lincolnshire. Only three 
fritillaries still survive in Yorkshire, B. selene, B. euphrosyne 
and A. agaja; these are now very local and are virtually 
confined to the Vale of Pickering. Until the 1950s, A. aglaja 
occurred widely in western and southern Yorkshire and B. 
selene was found on Skipwith Common up to the 1960s, but 
is still common at Lawkland Moss near Settle. In Lincolnshire 
the position is much worse; wheras six species of fritillary 


CHANGES DISTRIBUTION BUTTERFLIES YORKS. & N. ENG. 141 


occurred up to 1945, A. aglaja, I am told, is now the sole 
survivor. 

The position of Hamearis lucina (Linn.) is probably 
better in Yorkshire than in most counties, as there are several 
healthy colonies on the limestone around Pickering and 
Hemsley and it is more common there than in Cumbria. 

Much the same applies to Aricia agestis (D. & S.), but 
that is more widespread, occurring also on the chalk wolds 
and near Grassington in the north-west. Reference has already 
been made to the status of C. argiolus in south Yorkshire. 
There are also intermittent records from the region bordering 
on Cumbria, a county in which it is still frequent. Still in 
Cumbria, a new locality has lately been found for Cupido 
minimus (Fuess.), but there is no recent record for Yorkshire, 
in spite of some searching. 

Callophrys rubi (Linn.) used to occur on Skipwith 
Common and in other low-lying areas up to the 1950s, but 
now seems to be confined to hilly regions and especially 
the high moors of north-east Yorkshire, where it is mainly 
associated with bilberry. Q. quercus is taken in the neigh- 
bouring counties of Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and, 
especially, Cumbria, where it is said to be spreading. In 
Yorkshire, however, it continues to be elusive and is probably 
overlooked. It was first recorded on Strensall Common by the 
late Eric Richards in 1959 and was still there in 1977, when 
I beat larvae from the oaks. A most encouraging story is 
the notable extension of range of Strymonidia w-album 
(Knoch) in Yorkshire. This is particularly important at a 
time when many colonies in the south have been wiped out 
by Dutch elm-disease, which happily has not yet got such a 
hold in the north. Although less common in 1979, S. w-album 
was recorded widely over Yorkshire in 1977 and 1978 from 
as far north as Whitby, Kirbymoorside and Wass (near 
Thirsk); from Malton east to Hornsea Mere; at Mowbray 
Park near York, Sherburn in Elmet and Hetchell Wood near 
Thorner; and south to Wentbridge and onwards to Anston 
and Roche Abbey near Rotherham. It was also found near 
Preston in the Ribble Valley, this being, I believe, the first 
record for Lancashire. 

Erynnis tages (Linn.) is fairly widespread, occurring 
especially on the limestone in north-east Yorkshire. It has 
become scarce near Selby, though I saw it in 1979 at Sherburn 
Willows Nature Reserve eight miles away, and near Mickle- 
field on the magnesium limestone belt. Pyrgus malvae (Linn.) 
continues to be scarce and local in southern and eastern 
Yorkshire and there is no really recent record. However, 
Thymelicus sylvestris (Poda) occurs frequently in this part of 
Yorkshire and is extending its range westwards, having 
recently been observed near Wakefield and Huddersfield. I 
believe this species to be absent from Cumbria. 

I have not included a number of species which have 
not noticeably altered their status, such as Inachis io (Linn.), 


142 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/V1/80 


which may have increased in some places, Melanargia 
galathea (Linn.), which is still locally common, Anthocharis 
cardamines (Linn.), Lycaena phlaeas (Linn.), Polyommatus 
icarus (Rott.) and Ochlodes venata (Brem. & Grey). 

One thing is certain: the north-eastern portion of 
Yorkshire is by far the most productive area for butterflies 
and the north-western the poorest, apparently because it has 
less sunshine. 


SoME UNuSUAL SPRING MOTHS AT NINFIELD, SUSSEX. — 
On my first spring of continually running a trap in the Sussex 
countryside, several interesting moths, which I think merit 
a note, have turned up. The first unusuality came to light 
on the 17th March this year, this being a single Lithophane 
ornitopus Hufn. (Grey Shoulder Knot). Nearly a month later, 
on the 10th April, another example of this moth was taken. 
A few days previous to this, on the 13th April, a single 
female Orthosia miniosa D. & S. (Blossom Underwing) ap- 
peared, this was kept for ova though unfortunately expired 
without laying any. I am informed by Mr. C. Pratt that these 
two species were relatively common in E. Sussex until the 
1950’s when both seemed to suffer a decline and are now 
quite rare in this vice-county although they are still compara- 
tively common in parts of W. Sussex 

Another scarce moth in Sussex appeared on the 14th 
April, this being a fine female Lithophane socia Hufn. (Pale 
Pinion). This moth also appears to be a little more common 
in parts of W. Sussex. (S. Church, W. E. G. Newsletter 1979 
Vol. 4 No. 3). 

Also noteworthy is the fact that it seems to have been 
a good year for Orthosia populeti Fab. (Lead Coloured Drab) 
in E. Sussex. The moth appeared in several localities and, 
at my trap alone, was not uncommon with some 14 specimens 
seen with a peak of six on the 16th April. 

I am grateful to Mr. C. Pratt for extra information 
concerning these species. — M. Parsons, The Forge, Russells 
Green, Ninfield, nr. Battle, E. Sussex. 


COLEOPHORA CURRUCIPENNELLA (ZELLER) IN KENT. — At 
the kind invitation of Phil Jewess, a night visit to Hoads 
Wood, Bethersden on 13th July 1979 produced amongst other 
interesting species, five Coleophorid moths at light, all of 
which Dr. J. D. Bradley kindly confirmed as C. currucipen- 
nella. — N. F. Heal, ‘Fosters’, Detling Hill, Maidstone, 
Kent. [This appears to be one of the rarest of the Coleo- 
phoridae, with very few records of the species in recent years 
and no other confirmed occurrence for Kent to my knowledge 
this century, though a specimen (minus abdomen) from 
Elham Park Wood, Barham, Kent in the collection of the 
late S. Wakely may be referable to currucipennella. It has 
been suggested that the larva of currucipennella feeds high 
up and so escapes detection. — J. M. C.-H.] 


Another Fascicle of Moses Harris’ 
An Exposition of English Insects (1776) 


By Dr. RONALD S. WILKINSON * 

In his Bibligraphy of British Lepidoptera, 1608-1799 
(1960), the late Arthur A. Lisney was able to substantiate the 
suggestion of Hagen (1862) that the first edition of Moses 
Harris’ An Exposition of English Insects, a well-received 
eighteenth-century work which went through at least two 
editions and a number of issues, was first published in parts. 

Lisney reported that he had “recently identified two 
copies of the first decade [the first ten plates with their text], 
one of which is in my own library, and this discovery throws 
new light on the problem. Both of these copies are bound in 
contemporary boards and each contains the title-page to the 
entire work dated 1776. Separate copies of the later decades 
are not known” (Lisney, 1960, p. 170). Lisney described his 
own copy in the Bibliography. It was acquired by the British 
Museum (Natural History), and in 1966 I obtained from E. 
W. Classey the fascicle which was almost certainly the other 
copy examined by Lisney. Miss Pamela Gilbert, Entomological 
Librarian, BM(NH), has recently assisted me with information 
to enable a comparison of the two copies. 

The textual collation of my fascicle is the same as in the 
ex-Lisney copy, but a more bibliographically precise notation 
follows; as pagination is irregular, signatures are given rather 
than pages: frontispiece; [A,"] English title; verso blank, with 
three coloured drawings of Lepidoptera pasted to the page, 
surely by a very early owner of the fascicle; [A."] French 
title, with single coloured drawing of a lepidopteron pasted on; 
verso blank; B,'-[C."] Preface; D,'-[L."] text. Pagination: 
[i-iv], [i]-viii, [9]-40 pp. After the frontispiece, the plates in 
my copy are placed as follows: anatomical plate opp. p. ii; 
“Scheme of Colours” opp. vi; Tab. I opp. 10; Tab. II opp. 12 
Tab. III opp. 14; Tab. IV opp. 18; Tab. V_ opp. 20; Tab. VI 
opp. 24; Tab. IX (misplaced) opp. 28, followed by Tab. VII; 
Tab. VIII opp. 30; Tab. X opp. 38. My copy, like Lisney’s, has 
the slip (““Muscae, Order III’’) pasted on p. 40. 

Both copies are indeed in contemporary boards, covered 
with paper, marbled in the BM(NH) copy and a medium grey 
in mine. My spine is covered with different contemporary 
paper of lighter shade, while the BM(NH) copy has a leather 
spine apparently applied at a later date. Absent on the ex- 
Lisney copy but present on mine is an oval pink label on the 
front board, lettered in an eighteenth-century hand ‘“‘Harris’s 
No. 8/English Insects’. This is presently inexplicable as this 
part has been supposed to have been the first issued; but the 
discovery of additional fascicles or other data about the pub- 
lication history might lead to an explanation of the label. A 
varied number of watermarks is present in each fascicle, 
indicating that Harris’ printer used various stocks of laid paper 


ee American Museum of Natural History New York, New York 
4. 


144 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/V1I/80 


in making up the first part. As in the former Lisney copy, 
none of the watermarks in my copy are dated. My investiga- 
tions since 1966 have substantiated Lisney’s statement that 
there are no other known fascicles. 


References 
Hagen, H. A., 1862. Bibliotheca entomologica. Leipzig. 
Harris, M., 1776. An exposition of English insects. London 
Lisney, A. AS 1960. A bibliography of British Tenaopier! 1608-1799. 
London. 


EARLY IMMIGRANTS IN SUSSEX. — I am indebted to Mr. 
Colin Pratt for the following records: Heliothis peltigera 
(D. & S.), April 10th 1980, Ninfield, one fresh in trap before 
mid-night, by M. Parsons; Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel), Peace- 
haven, April 3rd (1), 10th (2), in trap; Nomophilia noctuella 
(D. & S.), April 7th, one in trap; Cynthia cardui (L.), between 
Seaford and Alfriston, April 2nd, one seen. Records of immi- 
grants in April are not numerous. Let us hope these augur 
a good year in 1980. — R. F. BRETHERTON, Folly Hill, Birtley 
Green, Bramley, Guildford, Surrey GU5 OLE. 


EUPITHECIA PUSILLATA D. & S. (SOBRINATA HBN.) AWAY 
FROM NATURAL JUNIPER. — We are rather accustomed to see- 
ing odd examples of this moth in gardens and locations well 
isolated from wild Juniper, and usually explain its spread and 
occurrence by introduction with container grown plants and 
gardens I have taken the moth each year in woodland where 
garden centres. In addition to its occurrence in Lincolnshire 
there was no juniper at all, but instead a range of western 
American conifers that included Lawson Cypress and Thuya. 
— G. M. HaAGGETT. 


FOODPLANT OF THE CINNABAR (TYRIA JACOBAEAE L.). — 
I read with interest Dr. Neville Birkett’s Note in Ent. Rec., 
92: 25. When I was living at Banstead, Surrey in the 1920’s 
and 1930's, the larvae of jacobaeae were great favourites, and 
we always searched for our examples on Banstead Downs on 
Coltsfoot which seemed to be its regular foodplant there. — 
W. E. Minnion, 40, Cannonbury Avenue, Pinner, Middlesex. 


TYRIA JACOBAEAE L. (CINNABAR) ON COLTSFOOT, ANOTHER 
RECORD. — Like Dr. Birkett (Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var., 
92: 25), we have found Cinnabar larvae feeding on Coltsfoot 
only once. On August 5th 1976 many large larvae were 
observed feeding extensively on Coltsfoot leaves along a mile 
of beach at Hauxley, near Amble, Northumberland. The 
plants were growing at the top of the beach just below a 
low boulder clay cliff. Ragwort on the cliff top was also 
being eaten but did not seem to be seriously depleted. Females 
may have laid on the Coltsfoot or wandering larvae could 
have fallen on to the plants from the cliff top Ragwort. 
Regrettably none were taken to test their viability on this 
foodplant, but a photograph was taken to record the event. 
— B. and I. D. Wattace, Merseyside County Museums, 
Liverpool. 


145 


The Chrysogaster species (Dipt. Syrphidae) known 
in Great Britain and Ireland 


By Martin C. D. SPEIGHT* 

Five species of Chrysogaster s.s are known both in Great 
Britain and Ireland. The keys available for distinguishing 
Chrysogaster species from one another, or from species of 
the closely related genera Lejogaster and Orthonevra, are 
difficult to interpret. In particular, the Chrysogaster species 
with black antennae are at present all too easily confused with 
each other, and their females could be misdetermined as 
species of the other genera involved. Further, if the common 
continental species C. viduata were to occur here, its presence 
could easily be overlooked. 


Distinctions between Chrysogaster, Lejogaster and Orthonevra 

The males of Chrysogaster species can easily be dis- 
tinguished from those of Lejogaster: in Lejogaster the males 
are dichoptic whereas in Chrysogaster they are holoptic. 
Distinctions from Orthonevra males are less easy to describe 
(differences between Orthonevra species are in any case such 
as to suggest that the validity of this genus as a monophyletic 
group remains open to question). O. splendens males entirely 
lack a facial tubercle, the area between antennae and upper 
mouth edge being quite flat (see fig. la). Although the other 
Orthonevra species do not possess a facial tubercle, whereas 
(in the male) all Chrysogaster species do (including C. viduata), 
when examined in profile Orthonevra males (especially 
O. brevicornis, see fig. 1b) not infrequently appear to possess 
a facial tubercle. Equally, when examined in profile C. 
chalybeata males seem to be virtually without a facial tubercle 
(see fig. 1c). If examined from above it will be seen that 
Orthonevra are without a facial tubercle, the appearance of 
a facial tubercle in side view being due to a shallow transverse 
cleft which interrupts the downward sweep of the face just 
above the projecting upper mouth edge (see fig. 1d). The 
seeming absence of a facial tubercle in C. chalybeata males 
is due to the fact that in this species the tubercle is expanded 
into a broad ridge running right across the face from one 
eye to the other (seefig. le). Males of C. solstitialis also 
approach this condition. The simple facial tubercle found in 
the males of the other Chrysogaster species is typified by that 
of C. hirtella (see fig. 1f). O. splendens males also possess a 
post-coxal bridge behind the hind coxae, a feature absent in 
the males of the other Orthonevra species and absent in 
Chrysogaster. 

Females of Lejogaster species possess a post-coxal bridge 
behind the hind coxae, which serves to distinguish them from 
females of the Chrysogaster species occuring here (and from 
C. viduata), there being no post-metacoxal bridge in Chryso- 
gaster. 


* Research Branch, Forest and Wildlife Service, 2 Sidmonton Place, 
Bray, Co. Wicklow, Eire. 


146 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI/80 


Females of O. splendens are distinct from those of all 
the Chrysogaster species known from Great Britain and 
Ireland (and C. viduata) in their possession of a pair of well- 
marked stripes (golden from some angles, grey from others) 
running from front to back of the mesonotum: no such 
stripes are present in the females of the Chrysogaster species 
keyed out here. The females of the other three Orthonevra 
species known in these islands have a well-marked median 
tubercle (very small in O. brevicornis) on the apical margin 
of tergite 4, there being no such tubercle in the females of 
Chrysogaster. 


Distinctions between Chrysogaster species 


According to Coe (1953) Chrysogaster species fall into 
two groups based on antennal colour, the one group pos- 
sessing red antennae, the other black antennae. Unfortunately, 
those with ‘“‘red” antennae often have antennae which can 
at most be described as red-brown, if not simply as brown, 
while in those species with ‘‘black”’ antennae (C. hirtella and 
C. macquarti, also C. viduata), the antennae can be distinctly 
brown. C. hirtella and C. macquarti are traditionally separated 
(see Collin, 1931; Coe, 1953) by differences in the facial 
profile and colouration of the mesonotal hair covering. 
However, the character of the facial profile varies sufficiently 
in these two species for there to be a significant degree of 
overlap, likewise the colouration of the mesonotal hairs. 

An important feature in separating C. solstitialis from 
the other species with ‘‘red’”’ antennae is the high degree of 
infuscation of its wings. But the wings. of C. virescens are 
darkened as much as are those of many specimens of C. 
solstitialis. The antennae can also be particularly dark in 
C. virescens, so that the female especially can be confused 
with C. hirtella, whose antennae are often brown. A further 
complication is that C. hirtella is widely distributed, frequently 
abundant where found and apparently partially divoltine, 
factors which, when coupled with the variability of this 
species, the fact that rarer species often occur in company 
with it and the confusion inherent in the keys, are likely 
to lead to specimens of C. hirtella being consigned to more 
than one of the other, rarer species and vice versa. 

C. viduata is a common continental Chrysogaster rather 
similar to C. hirtella. It has therefor been incorporated into 
the following key. 

Legend 

Fig.1: Chrysogaster and Orthonevra, characteristics of head and 
thorax. (a) O. splendens @, head, side-view; (b) O. brevicornis, idem; 
(c) C. chalybeata idem; (d) O. brevicornis ¢, face from above; (e) 
C. chalybeata, idem; (f) C. hirtella idem: (g) C. solotitialis 2, head, 


front-view; (h) C. virescens idem; (i) Chrysogaster sp., thorax, side- 
view of anterior parts. 


Abbreviations used: c = central prominence; cx: = front coxa; 
f = frontal prominence; mi = mesopleurite 1 (see text); m: = 
mesopleurite 2; p = “‘proepimeral area’’ (see text); pt = “‘ptero- 


pleuron’’; u = upper mouth edge; w = wing. 


o 
ces 


c 


? 


AS L@® 


a 


GB Oe 


yagen= 


Fig. 2 a, b, e, f: Chrysogaster males, view of outer side of right 
surstylus and external view of end of epandrium, showing surstyli; 
a = C. hirtella, b = C. macquarti, e = C. virescens, f = C. viduata 
(all at same scale). c, d, g: Chrysogaster females, outline of mesonotal 
disc and scutellum near mid-line, showing character of hair covering 
(hair thickness not to scale); c = C. hirtella, d = C. macquarti, g = 
C. viduata (all at same scale). 

Abbreviations used: ba = basale (tergite 9), ce = cercus, s 
surstylus. 


Fig. 2 


CHRYSOGASTER SPECIES IN GT. BRITAIN & N. IRELAND 147 


Various parts of the thoracic pleura are mentioned in 
the key. The area above and behind the front coxa (p in 
fig. 1i) has traditionally been regarded as mesopleural in 
origin. It is very much open to question whether such an 
interpretation is reasonable, since it assumes the prothoracic 
epimeron to be totally absent externally. Here the potentially 
propleural origin of this part of the thorax is alluded to by 
calling it the ‘‘proepimeral area’’. The mesothoracic episternum 
(‘“‘mesopleuron” plus ‘‘sternopleuron’’) is externally divisible 
into three recognisable regions, each of which is of use 
taxonomically. Traditionally, two of these have been together 
called the ‘‘mesopleuron’’. These latter two areas are here 
called simply mesopleurites one and two. The mesothoracic 
epimeron is likewise externally divisible into a number of 
parts. The only one of these mentioned here is the “ptero- 
pleuron”’. 


A Key to the Chrysogaster species of Great Britain and 
Ireland, plus C. viduata 

1. do (eyes touching above antennae)...... 2 

=o. (eyes, mot touching)\c.1. 6} av i] 

2. Proepimeral area (see fig. 1i) obviously dusted grey, dull 
or only slightly shining ...... 3 

— proepimeral area undusted, brightly shining...... 4 

3. Mesonotum with a distinct, median, matt-black stripe, 
from anterior margin to behind transverse suture; antennae 
black; wing-base brown; surstyli (see fig. 2f)...... 
viduata (L.) (continental Europe) 

— mesonotum without a median black stripe, or with only 
a trace of one; antennae red/reddish-brown; wing-base 
vellowersie 6 uk: chalybeata Mg. 

4. Mesonotal disc entirely matt, black, posterior part con- 
trasting sharply with the brightly shining, bronze scutellum; 
(antennae red/reddish-brown; wing heavily infuscated) 
etait. ve solstitialis (Fal.) 

— mesonotal disc mostly shining, posterior part shining as 
much as the scutellum, even if somewhat different in 
COlOUE AL At in +: 5 

5. Hairs on abdominal sternites (except st. 1) much shorter 
than those on mesonotal disc; antennae red/reddish-brown; 
general body colour dark bronze; surstyli, (see fig. 2e) 
DARREL TH virescens Lw. 

— hairs on abdominal sternites long, as long as those on 
mesonotal disc; antennae dark brown/black; general body 
colour normally black ...... 

6. Surstylus blunt-ended (see fig. 2b); mesonotum normally 
entirely black haired, though some yellowish or greyish 
hairs may be intermixed laterally...... macquarti Lw. 

— surstyli ending in a finger-like process, which is (side view) 
clearly marked off from the main body of the surstylus 
(see fig. 2a); mesonotum usually with abundant yellowish 
hairs mixed in with the blackish hairs, especially laterally 


148 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI/80 


in the vicinity of the wing-bases, though these yellowish 
hairs may be virtually absent...... hirtella Lw. 

7. “Proepimeral area’”’ of thorax (p in fig. 1i) dusted grey, 
hardly shining and thus contrasting sharply with mesopleur 
PLOBER Sn oe 8 

— “‘proepimeral area” undusted, brightly shining like the 
Mesopleur PLOpel + man 9 

8. Disc of tergites 3 and 4 brightly shining, not noticeably 
duller than side margins (mesonotal hair covering, see 


| gd ape Sacra Sail viduata (continental Europe) 
— disc of tergites 3 and 4 dull, only vaguely shining, distinctly 
duller“than”side. maroins © 7-20." chalybeata 


9. Disc of mesonotum quite coarsely punctured, but appar- 
ently bare (the covering hairs are extremely short); wing 
membrane usually infuscated (may be almost clear in 
Ch ViITescenS)\ ire ee 10 

— disc of mesonotum rather finely punctured and covered 
in short hairs (see fig. 2 c, d); wing membrane clear 

10. Frons at level of antennae nearly twice (ratio 1.9: 1.0) 
width of an eye at same level (see fig. 1h); mesopleurite, 
and pteropleur covered in short, pale (yellowish and grey) 
bristly hairs (a few black hairs sometimes mixed in); 
mesonotum brightly shining, bronze...... virescens 

— frons at level of antennae 14 times (ratio 1.5: 1.0) width 
of an eye at same level (see fig. 1g); mesopleurite, and 
pteropleur covered in extremely short, black, bristly hairs; 
mesonotum rather dull, with purplish reflections...... 
solstitialis 

11. Middle femora with distal half of anterior surface clothed 
in pale yellowish hairs; mesonotal disc with hairs on 
anterior half upright (see fig. 2c)...... hirtella 

— middle femora with distal half of anterior surface clothed 
in black hairs; mesonotal disc with strongly reclinate 
hairs on anterior half (see fig. 2d)...... macquarti 

Brief notes on the species 
The notes which follow are based largely on my own 
experience of these species, in various parts of Great Britain 
and Ireland. Information about flight period in the Nether- 
lands, provided by Dr. v. d. Goot is also presented, since it 
has a bearing on the potential performance of these species in 

““good”’ years here. 

C. chalybeata Mg. 
Habitat: fen; fen meadow; fenny river margins. 
Distribution: scattered throughout Ireland, Scotland and 

Wale; probably least common in S. England. 

Flight period: a summer species, peak in July; two peaks 

(June, August) in continental Europe (Netherlands). 

Flowers visited: Heracleum, Ocenanthe, Pimpinella 
saxifraga, Torilus japonica. 

C. hirtella Lw. 

Habitat: damp grassland with open, wet ditches: fen; 
pond, river and lakeside. 


CHRYSOGASTER SPECIES IN GT. BRITAIN & N. IRELAND 149 


Distributioin: throughout G.B. and Ireland. 

Flight period: prolonged, from May to August, peak in 
June; two peaks (May, August) in continental Europe 
(Netherlands). 

Flowers visited: Calthus, Heracleum, Iris, Oenanthe, 
Ranunculus, Taraxacum. 

C. macquarti Lw. 

Habitat: edges of valley bogs and sometimes blanket 
bogs; occasionally also in poorly drained pasture and poor 
fen. 

Distribution: scattered localities mostly in the North and 
West, in both G.B. and Ireland (seemingly quite local where 
found). 

Flight period: prolonged, from May to September; peak 
July/August. 

Flowers visited: Angelica, Heracleum, Oenanthe 
(Calluna and Erica in Netherlands — v. d. Goot). 

C. solstitialis (Fal.) 

Habitat: damp, deciduous woods (and conifer plan- 
tations, not infrequently) where there are ponds, wet ditches 
Cte. 

Distribution: throughout G.B., but rarer in the North; 
Eastern Ireland. 

Flight period: latest species of genus, from June to 
September; peak in August; two peaks (June, August/Sept.) 
in continental Europe (Netherlands). 

Flowers visited: Galium, Heracleum,t Ocenanthe, 
Petroselinum crispum, Ranunculus, Torilus. 

C. virescens Lw. 

Habitat: scrub-covered edges to valley bog and scrub- 
invaded, poorly drained, acid pasture. 

Distribution. insufficient information available; Irish 
records (only five available) all from within 10 km. of coast, 
widely scattered: N. Mayo, S. Galway, S. W. Kerry, Wicklow. 

Flight period: a spring species; peak in May; no records 
beyond June. 

Flowers visited: Jris, Ranunculus, Taraxacum. 

C. viduata (L.) (information from Dr. v. d. Goot). 

Habitat: a chalk country species with in addition some 

coastal localities; possibly with a preference for running 
water (Netherlands). 

Distribution: known in all countries along the Western 
coast of continental Europe, from Norway to Spain, in North 
Africa and across Eurasia as far as the Caspian Sea. 

Flight period: April to July (Netherlands). 

Flowers visited: Euphorbia, Ranunculus. 


Acknowledgements 
I am grateful to James Dear (Nat. Hist. Mus., London) 
for information about females of O. brevicornis in the 
museum collections and to E. Torp Pedersen (Jelling, 
Denmark) for material of C. viduata. I am indebted to Dr. 


150 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/V1/80 


John Ismay (Oxford) and Dr. V. S. v. d. Goot (Amsterdam) 
for their most helpful comments on an earlier draft of the 
manuscript and for various items of information. 


References 


Coe, R. L. (1953) Syrphidae, Diptera. Handbooks for the identification 
of British Insects, 10, (1), R. ent. Soc., London. 

Collin, J. E. (1931). Notes on some Syrphidae (Diptera). Ent. mon. 
Mazg., 67, 153-9. 


Notes and Observations 


MONMOUTHSHIRE MACROLEPIDOPTERA: SOME RECENT 
ReEcorps. — The years 1978 and 1979 saw the appearance in 
Monmouthshire of several species of moths which were either 
new ‘to the county or had only been recorded on a few 
occasions, while several butterflies were noted after an 
apparently prolonged absence. 

Of particular interest to me was the unexpected appearance 
of Mythimna pudorina D. & S. on an inland bog at an altitude 
of 750 ft. in the east of the county. I knew this moth from the 
Suffolk reed-beds and for some years had searched for it in 
vain in the fen-like areas of Monmouthshire near the Severn 
Estuary where a few small reed-beds still survive and the low- 
lying pastures, drained by a network of “‘reens’’, are protected 
from high tides by the sea-wall. It was therefore with surprise 
that I noted its arrival in some numbers on the sheet whilst 
running a m.v. light on this acid upland bog on the 8th July 
1978. I saw it there again the following year. 

Several days later, on 11th July 1978, in a reed-bed near 
the Severn, another species previously unrecorded from Mon- 
mouthshire turned up. This time a single specimen of A pamea 
oblonga Haw. an insect which again I only knew previously 
from East Anglia. 

On 29th August 1978, in a wood near Monmouth, I saw 
my first Monmouthshire specimen of Cyclophora albipunctata 
Hufn. I believe there is only one previous record for this 
moth, that of Nesbitt in 1892 from Llandogo, a few miles fur- 
ther down the Wye Valley. On 27th May 1979 the same wood 
provided a single example of Eupithecia irriguata Hb. Although 
it has been recorded from the neighbouring counties of Glou- 
cestershire, Herefordshire, and Glamorgan I believe it is new 
to the Monmouthshire list. 

During 1979 my garden m.v. trap at Usk produced several 
interesting species. In the spring there were single specimens 
of Orthosia populeti Fabr. on 21st and 28th April and two 
worn specimens on 15th May. This moth, as far as I am aware, 
had been recorded only once before, Bird having found larvae 
on poplar in the Wye Valley in 1907. A single example of 
Lithophane semibrunnea Haw. appeared on 15th May. Unlike 
Lithophane socia Hufn. which occurs here most years, L. 
semibrunnea has, I believe, only been recorded twice pre- 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS iow 


viously from Monmouthshire. It was first noted by Bird from 
the Tintern district in 1905 and my friend Lt.-Col. R. B. 
Humphreys of Durham secured one at m.v. light in Usk on 
28th October 1969. 

In July two specimens of Leucoma salicis Linn. turned 
up at Usk. This moth is well-established at Magor Marsh, a 
small fen in the south of the county and now a Nature Reserve 
owned by the Gwent Trust for Nature Conservation. This has 
been its only known station in the southern half of Wales and 
I have seen it there in varying numbers most years since finding 
it for the first time on 6th July 1971. However, a male of the 
species was attracted to an electric light in the yard of Usk 
Prison, now a Detention Centre, on 3rd July 1979, and another 
came to my m.v. trap two days later. It is of interest to note 
that Magor Reserve is also the only locality to the west of 
Offa’s Dyke for the Water Ermine (Spilosoma urticae Esp.) 
which I first encountered there on 11th July 1969. 

In the autumn two more species new to Monmouthshire 
appeared in my garden m.v. trap, Hoplodrina ambigua D. & S. 
on 3rd October 1979, and Lithophane leautieri Boisd. on 10th 
October. 

Turning to butterflies, the most noteworthy record was 
the sighting in the Monmouth district of a single Clouded 
Yellow (Colias croceus Geoffr.) on the early date of 16th June 
1979. It was flying rapidly and steadily in a northerly direction 
in the afternoon sunshine. Since the great Clouded Yellow 
invasion of 1947 it has rarely been noted in Monmouthshire 
and this is the earliest date on which I can recall seeing this 
migrant. 

Our one well-established and strong colony of the White 
Admiral (Ladoga camilla Linn.) in the north-east of the county 
continued to thrive during the last two years which also saw, 
in the same woods, a resurgence of the Dark Green Fritillary 
(Argynnis aglaja Linn.) which has been notably absent from 
Gwent for a considerable period. There were several reports 
of sightings of this species during the hot summer of 1976 but 
I myself had not seen it since about 1962 when it disappeared 
from a favoured haunt in the Tintern area where it flew in 
company with the Silver-washed Fritillary (Argynnis paphia 
Linn.) and the High Brown Fritillary (Argynnis adippe D. & 
S.). The latter also disappeared from that locality about 1966 
and has not been reported in the county since. 

Finally, on 8th July 1979 near Monmouth I saw a solitary 
belated Green Hairstreak (Callophrys rubi Linn.) another 
species which of late has become scarce in Monmouthshire. 
Though it formerly occurred in several localities including the 
Usk and Tintern districts this is the first one I have seen for 
pas years. — Dr. G. A. Nett Horton, Plas Newydd, Usk, 

went. 


Eppinc Forest. — I cannot agree with Mr. Wykes that 
Epping Forest is more or less an entomological desert (1979, 
Ent. Rec., 91: 225). It may not be particularly rich in butter- 
flies, but I would remind Mr. Wykes that it was an. Epping 


152 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/V1I/80 
grocer who discovered the attractions of sugar. 

In the winter of 1923, T. A. M. Nash and I spent many a 
profitable Sunday pupa digging there. — D. G. Sevastopulo, 
F. R. E. S., P. O. Box 95617, Mombasa (Nyali), Kenya. 


DONACIINI (COL.: CHRYSOMELIDAE): A POSTSCRIPT. — 
In the course of my editorial notes appended to Mr. Parry’s 
paper on these beetles, I wrote (antea: 11, note 2) that the 
hydrofuge pile clothing the underside in Donacia and Plateu- 
maris was not possessed by Macroplea. This as it stands is 
somewhat misleading and requires to be expanded, since the 
statement might be understood to mean that the ventral sur- 
face in Macroplea is glabrous like the dorsal, which is not 
the case. Indeed Fowler (1890, Col. Brit. Isl., 4: 278) writes 
that the underside is ‘“‘clothed with yellowish-silvery pu- 
bescence which is sometimes golden’’. However, after careful 
examination under a high power, I am convinced that this 
clothing in Macroplea is of a different nature from that found 
in the other two genera. It appears rather to be an amorphous, 
probably waxy, secretion or crust, analogous perhaps to that 
of certain aquatic weevils; pale whitish ochreous, scarcely 
metallic but slightly iridescent about the antennal bases etc. 
It is easily abraded, and when a little is scraped off with a 
needle no structure is discernible. 

In note 7 I mentioned having taken Donacia versicolorea 
singly in early September. It is worth remarking that three 
examples from P. Harwood’s duplicates (overlooked at the 
time of writing) were taken as late as 25.ix; this clearly is 
not a case of an isolated straggler, but points to the species 
as, in all likelihood, habitually the latest of our Donacia to 
be active in the open. More exceptional, no doubt, is a D. 
versicolorea labelled as taken in February (ex coll. J. Cribb). 
It can hardly have been active at that season, but there is 
nothing to say how it was captured. 

Finally I should like to correct a couple of misprints: 
note 4, last line, insert ‘be’ before ‘common’; note 7, first line, 
insert ‘I’ before ‘agree’, — A. A. ALLEN. 

HoORISME AQUATA HUEBNER (CUMBRIAN UMBER). — A set 
specimen of this dubious British moth was recently spotted 
in the collections of the Hancock Museum by Mr. T. Melling 
a zoology undergraduate of Bolton. It was in a series labelled 
H. vitalbata D. & S. (Small Waved Umber), in the J. J. Joicey 
collection of British Lepidoptera. The specimen bears two 
labels one of which reads ‘“‘coll. of G. C. Alston” and the 
second “Cumberland J. W. Tutt”. The specimen is of special 
interest because of an article by Tutt in Ent. Record 1900, 
vol. 12, pp. 35 (and 82, 85) and another by Cockayne in Ent. 
Record 1952, vol. 64 pp. 73-75.Four of Tutt’s specimens are 
apparently in the B. M. (N.H.) and the fifth is unaccounted 
for — this may be the one in the Joicey Collection. I would 
be interested to learn from any reader information about 
G. C. Alston. Who was he and where and when did he live? 
— A. G. Lonc, Deputy Curator, Hancock Museum, New- 
castle upon Tyne. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 153 


PHLOIOTRYA VAUDOUERI Muts. (COL.: MELANDRYIDAE) IN 
S. E. Lonpon. — I was surprised to find an incomplete 
elytron of this generally scarce woodboring beetle on the 
ground near a white willow in Maryon Wilson Park, Charlton, 
one day last autumn. Its identity, suspected at the time, was 
verified beyond doubt from my collection. The presumption, 
however the beetle had originally come from the afore- 
said willow is greatly open to question; the tree is not dead, 
has all its bark and shows no bore-holes in the trunk, but 
some upper branch could be, or have been, infested. Or it 
may have come from some other tree, or even have been 
carried by a bird from a distance. The nearest previous record 
appears to be for Dulwich, also in S. E. London (Fowler, 
1891, Col. Brit. Isl. 5: 45). — A. A. ALLEN. 

RASPBERRY AS A NATURAL PABULUM OF THE HOLLY BLUE. 
— The note by Dr. J. V. Banner in the Nov./Dec. 1979 issue 
of the Record reminded me of a similar experience I had 
when I lived in Stowmarket in the 1950’s. I found a number 
of larvae feeding on respberries in my garden, which sub- 
sequently emerged as Celastrina argiolus. The perfect insects 
were rather smaller than usual, but otherwise quite normal. 
— H. E. CnrpperFIELD, The Shieling, Walberswick, South- 
wold, Suffolk. 


THE WHITE-LETTER HAIRSTREAK: STRYMONIDIA W-ALBUM 
Knocu. — Mr. A. A. Allen (Ent. Rec., 92: 6) finds it difficult 
to account for the occurrence of a single Strymonidia w-album 
in a garden at Carshalton Beeches, Surrey in 1978, citing the 
nearest colonies on record, from which it could have strayed, 
as being at Box Hill and Bookham Common. I cannot speak 
from experience of the former locality, but de Worms, in the 
1959 supplement to his Butterflies of London and its Sur- 
roundings (1950), records only two casual sightings of the 
species on Bookham Common. I can record, however, that a 
strong colony existed there up to and including 1975, when 
the parent elm was observed to be dying. None were seen 
in 1976 or 1979. A similarly strong colony on Ashtead 
Common, nearer to Carshalton than either Box Hill or 
Bookham Common, and not recorded by de Worms, expired 
at the same time. 

Mr. Allen’s 1978 sighting is particularly interesting in the 
light of the Forestry Commission’s report on elm disease for 
1976, which states that 94% of Surrey’s elms and 81% of 
those in the GLC area had succumbed by that year. Clearly, 
the two localities discussed above could not be the source of 
a stray insect in 1978 and it would therefore be interesting 
to read more in these pages of the present status (and 
prospects) of this species in Surrey and the South in general. 
— P. J. Hotpaway, 81 Melody Road, Biggin Hill, Westerham, 
Kent TN16 3PJ. [L. K. and K. G. W. Evans, Survey of the 
Macrolepidoptera of Croydon and North-East Surrey, cite a 
number of localities for w-album.in the area, the nearest of 
which is Nonesuch Park, some 3 miles from Carshalton 
Beeches. — J. M. C.-H.] 


154 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI/80 


THE CHOCOLATE-TIP: CLOSTERA CURTULA L. IN SCOTLAND. 
— Seven specimens of this moth, all males, were captured in 
a Robinson light trap near Dinnet, Aberdeenshire, on 19 June 
1979. This is, to my knowledge, only the second record for 
Scotland (the first was from near Loch Ness by B. Skinner). 
The locality is a birch-aspen wood within the Muir of Dinnet 
National Nature Reserve, one of the richest known insect 
localities in north east Scotland with 373 recorded species of 
Lepidoptera. The Dinnet C. curtula are not noticeably differ- 
ent in any way from English specimens. 

In the same immediate area, the only recent County 
record of the Beautiful Brocade, Lacanobia contigua (Denis 
& Schiff) was captured in July 1978 - a single worn male in a 
Rothamsted trap. — PETER MarreENn, 3 Ewen Place, Banchory, 
Kincardineshire. 


EURRHYPARA PERLUCIDALIS HBN. (LEP.: PYRALIDAE) IN 
Essex. — Since it would appear that all the recorded colonies 
of perlucidalis occur in fens or marshes, it may be of interest 
to give some details of what appears to be a regular colony 
here; although the site would be less than 50ft. above sea 
level, it is certainly not marsh land and is surrounded by 
ordinary arable farm land. The total since 1966, when it was 
first noted, are as follows: — 1966 (1); 1967 (0); 1968 (0); 
1969 (1); 1970 (0); 1971 @); 1972 @1):, 1973 (G3) e119 Gy: 
1975 (18); 1976 (53); 1977 (5); 1978 (9); 1979 9). — A. J. 
DeEwIck, Curry Farm, Bradwell-on-Sea, Southminster, Essex. 


THE CAMBERWELL BEAUTY (NYMPHALIS ANTIOPA L.) IN 
OXFORDSHIRE. — A specimen of this unmistakable species 
was observed feeding from decaying material on my late 
father’s compost heap at Chipping Norton, Oxon, during the 
afternoon of 18th August, 1977. What appared to be the same 
specimen, was again observed the following morning in the 
same vicinity. I have only recently found time to organise 
my records for the past several years — hence the delay in 
the publication of this record. —P. D. J. Huco, 32 Kingsfield, 
Ringwood, Hants. 


THE WARM SPRING OF 1980, AND ITS EFFECTS AS 
REFLECTED IN EARLY EMERGENCE OF SPRING Motus. — The 
spring of 1980 was unusual in two respects in South East 
England. There was a certain amount of migration from the 
continent but also a number of extremely early emergences 
of species that are seldom seen before May and June. These 
began with a specimen of Selenia lunularia Hubn., which 
was disturbed from vegetation in the early morning of March 
Ist, in my garden at Eastbourne. Apart from the exceptionally 
early date (flight period June/July) this species has only been 
recorded once in recent years (Ent. Rec. J. Var. 91: 10). 

Two other early emergences recorded from Eastbourne 
were of Pheosia gnoma Fabr., on the 16th April, and an early 
Opistograptis luteolata Linn., on the 12th April. 

These records may seem strange upon their own, but I 
have had numerous communications from Mr. M. Parsons 


CURRENT LITERATURE 155 


at nearby Ninfield, Near Battle who reports the folowing: 
Orthosia incerta Hufn., 20.2., Cerastis rubricosa D. & S. and 
Xylocampa areola Esp., 21.2., Biston strataria Biuin.37 29:2. 
Drymonia ruficornis Hufn., upon the 13th, 14th, 15th and 
16th of April. The last, but unusually early dates were for 
Ochropleura plecta Linn., on the 15th and 16th of April. — 
Mark Hap ey F.R.E.S. Zoology 2, Dept. Life Sciences, 
Imperial College, Prince Consort Road, London SW7. 


Current Literature 
The Moths and Buttreflies of Great Britain and Ireland, 

Volume 9. Sphingidae - Noctuidae (Noctuinae and 

Hadeninae). Editors: John Heath and A. Maitland 

Emmet. Associate editors: D. S. Fletcher, E. C. Pelham- 

Clinton and W. G. Tremewan. Artists: Brian Hargreaves 

and Maureen Lane. 288pp., 19 text illusts. (of 40 figs.), 

203 distribution maps, 16 coloured plates (of 544 figs.). 

Curwen Books, 1979. £25. 

This is the second volume to be issued, of a projected 
series of 11, intended to cover the whole of the British 
lepidoptera. The book begins with a short editorial preface, 
followed by an interesting chapter by Prof. M. C. Birch on 
male eversible structures of British species of Sphingidae, 
Arctiidae and Noctuidae (pp. 9-18), furnished with a list of 
33 bibliographical references and 12 line drawings. Then 
follows the systematic section or main part of the work. In 
this are treated the Sphingidae (pp. 20-39), by Comdr. W. 
L. R. E. Gilchrist; Notodontidae (pp. 39-65), Lymantriidae 
(pp. 66-78) and Arctiidae (pp. 78-110), by the late Baron 
C. G. M. de Worms; Thaumetopoeidae (p. 65) and Ctenuchidae 
(p. 111), by J. Heath; Nolidae (pp. 112-120), by R. J. Revell; 
and finally, Noctuidae: Noctuinae and Hadeninae (pp. 120- 
278), by R. F. Bretherton, B. Goater and R. I. Lorimer. 
At the end of each family is a list of bibliographical refer- 
ences, that for the Noctuidae running to 131 items. The text 
concludes with two indices: one, a general index (pp. 281- 
286); and the other, an index of host plants (pp. 286-288). 

As in volume 1, the systematic section is printed in 
double columns. Keys are provided to all species (imagines) 
excepting certain ones of doubtful British status; for the 
Noctuidae, there are also keys to all subfamilies, including 
keys to those subfamilies to appear in volume 10. Detailed 
descriptive treatment is given of the imago and early stages 
(when known) of most of the 246 species concerned, with 
those of only doubtful or casual status generally receiving 
relatively slight coverage. To assist identification, attention 
is drawn to the difference between species of similar appear- 
ance, and as a further aid there is a number of useful 
diagrams of the genitalia, wing venation and external 
morphology. Particulars of variation in the perfect insect 
tend to be brief. 


156 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VI/80 


The short accounts of distribution are supplemented by 
193 dot distribution maps, founded on data cards held at 
the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Biological Records 
Centre, Monks Wood, with a further ten ‘graded’ maps of 
migrant species devised by R. F. Bretherton. Besides giving 
some idea of known distribution, these maps are of interest 
as indicating recent decline in certain species, notably 
Meganola strigula D. & S., Eilema sororcula Hufnagel, Orgyia 
recens Hbn., Furcula bifida Brahm and the southern English 
race of Parasemia plantaginis L. However, the value of these 
maps should not be overrated.’ 

The book contains many coloured illustrations. Plates 
A, B and C consist of 38 figures reproduced from colour 
photographs of larvae and imagines “‘of typical representatives 
of each of the subfamilies treated in this volume and volume 
10. . . to amplify the introductory text to the families and 
subfamilies.”” Although none is to scale, many of these 
photographs present a good likeness; a few, however, that 
are quite out of proportion to their actual size are unrealistic. 
The 13 plates of adult insects gathered together at the end 
of the book consist of 506 figures reproduced from colour 
drawings by Brian Hargreaves, and are all natural size 
excepting those of the Nolidae which are xl.5. The majority 
of these figures will suffice for determination by a novice, 
but there are others among the Noctuidae which will not, 
including a few that defy recognition even by an expert. 
This is unfortunate, as the purpose of these illustrations is 
to provide a reliable means of identification, especially of 
the critical species in this family. On the other hand, a 
welcome feature is the number of different aberrations and 
races shown, as an example of which one may cite Diarsia 
mendica F. and its various forms (ten figures). 

This volume compares favourably with the previous one, 
the text being of a high standard with particularly good 
descriptive accounts of the perfect insects and early stages, 
as well as additional information of interest for which the 
various authors deserve due praise. Moreover, there appear 
to be no misprints (at least the reviewer noticed none), which 
is quite remarkable in a book of this nature and complexity. 
The illustrations of the set insects are by no means the best 
we have seen by this artist (who is capable of producing really 
fine work), but for the most part they are adequate for 
identification, and in those cases where they fail the detailed 
descriptions must serve. — J. M. C.-H. 


*It is hard to know how much reliance one should place on these maps. 
Apart from their provisional nature (note the reference to omissions 
on page 19), far more serious are the number of known and suspected 
errors of commission. Besides processing errors, the main problem 
seems to have been one of misidentification, and one cannot impress 
too strongly on the editors the importance of exercising the greatest 
care in confirming identificatiions. We understand a list of corrigenda 
is to appear in due course. 


Holidays — Edwardian country house in 10 acres of its own oak woodlands, 
adjoining pine forest and fields. Self-contained holiday flat to sleep 4. Moth 
traps welcome! — Mrs. Tatham, Oxenways, Membury, Axminster, East 
Devon. 


For Sale— 1. 18 drawer Brady Specimen Cabinet, solid mahogany. 
Concealed runners, wood panelled door with key. Drawers 
17” x 16” x 2”. Lift off framed glass lids—hidden camphor 


cell. £600. 

2. A similar cabinet to the above but with glass panelled door. 
£600. 

3. 9 Vols. Buckler’s Larvae of British Butterflies and Moths. 
£350. 


4. 2 W. & D. travelling setting cases with boards. £15 each. 


5. A double sided solid mahogany display case with glass 
framed lid and cork base. Camphor cells each side. 17” x 
1S 250, LES: 


6. 2 Collapsible Robinson traps with chokes, bulbs, etc. in 
fitted cases. £50. 


7. Bignall Pattern Beating Tray. £10. 

8. Kite net—wood and brass. £10. 

9. Sweep net—heavy pattern. £10. 

10. 30 assorted setting boards. £10. 

11. Degreasing Kit—SO x 1” x 2 tubes in case and store-box 
with numbered sections. £15. 


From Harvey, The Flat, Pembroke Garage Ltd., H.M.S. Pembroke, 
Chatham, Kent. Phone Medway 44310 at any time. 


EXCHANGE AND WANTS 


For Sale — Microlepidoptera Palearctica. Ed. Amsel, Gregor & Reisser. 
Vol. 1. Crambinae by Bledzynski. Vol. 2. Ethmiidae by Sattler. Vol. 3. 
Cochylidae by Razowski. All in mint condition in cases as issued. — Offers 
to Dr. N. L. Birkett, Kendal Wood, New Hutton, nr. Kendal, Cumbria. 
Tel. 0539 20012. 


For Sale —Greenough binocular dissecting microscope, polished wood 
travelling case; objectives 12” x 14”, eyepieces x5 and x10. Glass fronted 
mahogany 10 drawer cabinet. 10 drawer stained wood cabinet (2 drawers 
without glass). 8 large store boxes. Setting cabinet, 8 setting boards, dissect- 
inb board, drawer for pints, etc. Offers. — Revd. P. W. E. Currie, The 
White House, Trimingham, Norwich NR11 8HP. 


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CONTENTS 


Coleophora adjectella H.-S. (Lep.: Coleophoridae) — a Species 
Newly Recognised as British. Lt. Col. A. M. EMMET ... 


Changes since 1900 in the Distribution of Butterflies in Yorkshire 
and Elsewhere in the North of Scan 
S. M. (JACKSON) 3. Ml: 


Another Fascicle of Moses Harris’ An Sie (at of ais Insects 
(1776). Dr. R. S. WILKINSON : as aa 


The Chrysogaster species known in Great Britain and Ireland. Dr. 
M. C. D. SPEIGHT .. ape Re Q : 
Notes and Observations: 


A New Locality for Maen irrorella Hon. in Kent. A. J. 
BUTCHER ke : : 


Some Unusual Besta Moths at Ninfield, Sussex. M. PAR- 
SONS ay 


Coleophora currucipennella Z. in Kent. N. F. HEAL ... 
Early Immigrants in Sussex. R. F. BRETHERTON 


Eupithecia pusillata D. & S. (sobrinata Hass ate from 
Natural Juniper. G. M. HAGGETT : 


Foodplant of the Cinnabar (Tyria jacobaeae L.). W. E. MIN- 
Tyria jacobaeae L. (Cinnabar) on Coltsfoot, another Record. 
B. AND I. D. WALLACE Mis Ais Sule z 


Monmouthshire Macrolepidoptera: Some Recent Records. Dr. 
G. A. N. HORTON : aa A, oth ee ‘ 


Epping Forest. D. G. SEVASTOPULO 


Donaciini ae Roamer auc i, a FostseriDt A. A. AL- 
LEN ; ; 5 


Horisme aquata Hbn. (Cumbrian Umber). Dr. A. G. LONG . 


Phloiotrya vaudoueri Muls. (Col.: Melandryidae) in S. E. 
London. A. A. ALLEN AP sae ae He ons 


Raspberry as a Natural Pabulum of the HolDy Blue. .H. E. 
CHIPPERFIELD “Bs af $ : 


The White-letter Hairstreak: Someone w-album Knoch. P. 
J. HOLDAWAY - : : 


The Chocolate-tip: Clostera curtula L. in Scotland. P. MAR- 


Eurrhypara perlucidalis Hbn. in Essex. A. J. DEWICK 
The Camberwell Beauty in Oxfordshire. P. D. J. HUGO 


The Warm Spring of 1980, and its Effects as Reflected in ake 
Emergence of Spring Moths. M. HADLEY oo 


Current Literature 


The Butterflies and Moths of Kent, Volume 3. J. M. CHALMERS- 
BUNT ee a 


129 


Printed by Charles Phipps Ltd., 225 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4HL 


VOL. 92, Nos. 7 and 8 


July/August, 1980 ISSN 0013 8916 


ie ne ee eae 


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DDD ADD DADS SPLOT AD AD LD DOLD 


5, 1059 
ie 


THE. 
ENTOMOLOGIST’S 
RECORD 


AND JOURNAL OF VARIATION 


Edited by J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT, F.R.£.s. 
with the assistance of 


A. A. ALLEN, B.SC., A.R.C.S. P. J. CHANDLER, B.SC., F.R.E.S. 
NEVILLE BIRKETT, M.A., M.B. C. A. COLLINGWOOD, B.SC., F.R.E.S. 
S. N. A. JACOBS, F.R.E.S. J.HEATH, F.R.E.S., F.L.S. 


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THE LIFE CYCLE OF CHRYSODEIXIS CHALCITES (ESPER) 157 


The Life Cycle of Chrysodeixis chalcites (Esper) 
(Lep., Noctuidae: Plusiinae), and an Account of 
the Breeding Techniques Used 


By D. R. STEPHENSON * 

I have already recorded (antea 91: 269) the fact that on 
the 8th October 1979 I captured a single female specimen of 
Chrysodeixis chalcites in my garden M.V. trap. The moth 
was kept alive in a breeding cage and on the 9th October 
deposited approximately 60 eggs singly around netting of the 
cage. On the following evening approximately the same 
number of eggs were laid and the moth was taken then killed 
and set, still in a reasonably good condition. 


The Ova 

The ova are pale green, inclining to white, and are shiny 
in appearance. They are flattish and hemispherical in shape 
with a wide flat base, delicately ribbed and reticulated. They 
were removed from the cage by cutting the netting and were 
then placed in a small plastic container and kept at a 
temperature of approx. 65°F. They were inspected twice 
daily for signs of hatching and on the 16th October the 
micropyle darkened considerably and this was the first real 


indication I had observed which verified their fertility. On 
the 17th October the eggs darkened in colour and the 
following day all the eggs hatched except for about 35 which 
must have either been damaged or infertile. Ten of the eggs 
were given to Dr. Neil Horton whom I have recently had 
the pleasure of meeting and, I believe, nine of these hatched 
successfully. 


The Larvae 

The 75 newly hatched larvae were semi-transparent 
inclining to white, each segment being very pronounced, and 
tapering to the head which was black. The thoracic legs were 
also black. They were kept initially at room temperature 
(60°F.) and fed readily on Urtica dioica — The Common 
Stinging Nettle. According to South (The moths of the British 
Isles, Vol. I) the larvae also feed on Salvia and Echium. 

During the initial stages of the larvae I had to go to 
Gt. Yarmouth, Norfolk with my wife and son so I potted 
some nettle and covered the nettle and pot with a plastic 
freezer bag and punctured it several times with a pin to 
allow for condensation, however this was to be a problem 
and the top end of the bag had to be cut open in order to 
minimise the moisture content. Fortunately the larvae were 
quite content to remain on the foodplant and showed no 
signs of wandering. They all remained on the underside of 
the leaves in a looped position and nibbled from the centre 
of the leaf outwards. This tendency remained until the larvae 


* “The Haven”, St. Mary Church, Cowbridge, S. Glamorgan. S. Wales. 


158 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


were at least 16 mm. in length when they started to eat 
from the outer edge of the leaf inwards. 

On the 25th October two larvae died, I believe during 
the skin change. I was very concerned about the possibility 
of disease but I only lost two more larvae, again during the 
skin change on the 5th November. Upon my return to South 
Wales the larvae were large enough to transfer to a larger 
cylindrical rearing cage. I used potted nettle as I was con- 
cerned that there may be a harsh frost which would probably 
deplete the nettle population in the area. This, fortunately 
was not to be, and the foodplant was abundant up to the 
time of pupation. I kept 15 larvae in a separate container so 
as to minimise the chances of losing all to disease. For the 
remainder of the larval stage they were kept in my airing 
cupboard at a temperature of 68°-78°F. 

Following their Ist instar, the larvae were green but 
still semi-transparent, and the spiracles were black. The 
shade of green was constant and the larvae blended remark- 
ably with the nettle leaves. The head was pale tan in colour 
and the thoracic legs black. They were similar after the 2nd 
instar but following the 3rd instar the larvae were no longer 
semi-transparent and the green stading became darker. Their 
length at this stage was 20 mm. on average and they were 
much plumper in appearance. The spiracular band was of 
a darker green in contrast to the general green colouring 
of the larvae. 

The final instar larvae measured 25-28mm. in length 
just prior to pupation and the segments were far less 
pronounced when compared to Ist instar larvae. The overall 
shape indicated a gradual taper from the anal end to the 
head. Situated along the back were sparsely spread obscure 
warts from which eminated 3or 4 bristles of short, fine, hair. 
The head was greenish brown dotted with small black warts. 
The spiracular band was white, broad and continuous but 
narrowing from the tenth segment to the anal flap. This 
band is located just beneath the black spiracles. The general 
colouration of the larvae was green. There was a pronounced 
dark green line running the full length of the back, and 
parallel to this, and each side of it were 3 wavy white bands, 
the central one on each side being the broadest. These two 
broader lines were broken in the centre of each segment by 
a green ring and in the middle of each ring was a white dot. 
Between the lowest of these wavy white lines and the 
spiracular band is a broad dark green band. The anal angle 
is sharply pronounced and falls away steeply from the last 
segment to the anal claspers. Just prior to pupation the larva 
becames shorter and plumper and the ground colouration 
becomes generally paler and the markings less pronounced. 

At the final count, 57 larvae were full grown and ready 
for pupation. I placed plenty of peat in the bottom of the 
rearing cylinder and added some pieces of bark. Both of 
these sites were completely ignored and on the 7th November 


THE LIFE CYCLE OF CHRYSODEIXIS CHALCITES (ESPER) 159 


1979 the larvae began spinning a delicate pure white web on 
the corners of the plastic top of the cage. This spinning 
process took about 12 hours to complete. The cocoon is so 
delicate that the larvae were clearly visible inside. After 
another 36 hours the transformation to pupae had taken 
place. After space was no longer available around the lid 
the larvae started spinning on the sides of the cylinder. Two 
of these spun such tight cocoons that the pupae were, in 
fact, crushed and deformed, and failed to hatch. Twenty 
larvae enclosed themselves within the leaves of the nettles 
by folding over the leaf edges. Unfortunately whilst these 
were hatchinng I did not initially notice that the moths could 
not free themselves from the folded leaves which resulted 
in six cripples, but upon observing this I cut a hole in the 
ends of the leaves so that the imagos could crawl free easily 
to expand their wings. 

I should perhaps state at this stage that although the 
larvae were relatively overcrowded, no acts of cannibalism 
were observed, only a twitching or thrashing action of the 
body when a larvae was touched by another. When the larvae 
were nearly full grown they ate so rapidly that four large 
nettle plants would disappear overnight, and this made the 
job of caring for these creatures considerably time consuming. 
Full credit must go to my wife and son for being so patient 
with me during this time! 


The Pupae 


The pupae are a pale shade of green over their entirity 
for the first two days after pupation. They then make a 
remarkable transformation. Observing the pupae from a 
ventral aspect of the wing cases become a golden-brown 
colour, lighter at the head end and darker at the base, with 
a centrally positioned pale green patch next to the antenna. 
The abdomen is pale green blotched with brown on each 
segment. The wing cases join the antennae and legs to cover 
ventrally all of the 3rd abdominal ring and most of the 4th, 
and this reaches almost two-thirds of the total body length. 
The cremaster consists of a number of brown bristles. 

The dorsal aspect of the pupae shows the head and eye 
cases brown, the thorax black, and segments 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 
almost entirely black, except for a narrow green edging. 
Segment 6 has a black triangular shape with the point of 
the triangle facing towards the anal end. Segments 7 & 8 
are green with brown markings. The final two segmental 
joints are black (anal end) and the next two are greenish- 
brown. The total length of the pupae measured 20 mm. 
(13 mm. from tip of head to bottom end of wing case and 
7mm. from bottom top of wing case to cremaster.). 

The final larvae pupated on the 10th November 1979 
on some black fine mesh, this having been introduced to 
the cage to allow more space for pupation. From the start 
of spinning the cocoon to the complete transformation to 


{60 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIf1/80 


pupae took 48 hours approx. The pupae were kept in the 
airing cupboard at 68°-80°F and were sprayed with water 
twice daily so that moisture was always present. Twigs were 
placed in the rearing cage so that the environment was 
suitable for wing drying. On the 17th November the wing 
pattern could be seen clearly through the pupal wing cases 
and the lower abdominal sgments turned a pinkish-brown 
colour with no green colour remaining. 


4 chalcites hatched on the 18th Nov 3 males 1 female 
4 39 39 9° 9° 19th 3 2 9° 2 > 
6 3° >>) 3° 3:3 20th 3° 4 3 y 99 
6 99 99 $3 33 21st 9° 4 °° 2 9° 
Is 3° 99 9° 399 92nd 3° 9 9° 6 =} -) 
15 3° 99 39 39 23rd 9° 8 3° 7] 3° 
50 total SUr ea. 200 


30 specimens were killed and set in perfect condition. 
six were crippled and 14 kept for breeding purposes. Mating 
was not observed for some 10 days after hatching and 
difficulty was experienced in finding the right conditions. 
Cool and warm temperatures were tried but seemingly to 
no avail unless mating took place in the early hours of the 
morning. A mixture of honey and sugar was introduced to 
the cage and the moths fed on this readily. The soaked 
cotton wool pad was fought over by the moths and they lived 
for well over a month in the cage. 

I found two pairs mating and transferred these to a 
rearing cage. After several days a large series of eggs were 
laid, and at least 200 must have hatched. Unfortunately it 
was at a time when I had many other committments and 
time was scarce. I had to release most of them to the wild 
but no doubt they will not survive the rigours of our winter, 
but at this moment I have about 25 larvae in my rearing 
cage and they are all healthy. I hope to breed again in the 
summer when I shall be able to sleeve the larvae on growing 
plants outside. 


LASIUS FULIGINOSUS (LATREILLE) (HYMENOPTERA: FORMI- 
CIDAE IN BUCKINGHAMSHIRE. — Having recently received a 
copy of the new (1979) edition of the Ants, Part 5 of the 
Biological Records Centre’s Provisional Atlas of the Insects 
of the British Isles, it occurs to me that I ought to place on 
permanent record the discovery of a small colony of the large 
shiny black ant Lasius fuliginosus at Stone, Bucks., on June 7, 
1979 (Map ref. SP 792123). The ants were on a single nettle 
plant, among a clump of others, on a dense grassy path verge 
and were tending a densely-packed colony of dark green 
aphides. My identification was subsequently confirmed by Dr. 
M. V. Brian of the Nature Conservancy’s Furzebrook Research 
— ANTHONY WOoTTON, Stone, Bucks. 


161 


Some New Records of Lepidoptera from Southern 
Scotland in 1979 


By K. P. BLAND * 

Nepticula pomella Vaughan, 1858. Occupied and vacated 
leafmines agreeing with those of N. pomella were found in 
the leaves of crabapple (Malus sylvestris Mill.) at Craig- 
roysten (O. S. NN/3402), Loch Lomond, Stirlingshire (V. c. 
86) on Ist October 1978. Several larvae left the mines and 
successfully pupated in orange-brown cocoons. Unfortunately 
all died just prior to emergence of the imagines, but genitalia 
preparations of the unemerged imagines confirmed them to 
be N. pomella. This species does not seem to have been 
recorded from Scotland. 

Amphisbatis incongruella (Stainton, 1849). Three cases 
of this Oecophorid were found in crevices in a rocky outcrop 
on the summit of Traprain Law (O.S. NT/5774), near East 
Linton, East Lothian (V. c. 82) on 8th and 13th April 1979. 
One case contained only an exuvium, another was parasitized 
but the third produced a 2 imago on 12th April 1979. The 
case in all instances was composed of longitudinally placed 
pieces of dried grass — there was no heather in the near 
vicinity and it is doubtful if there was any on the hill. A 
search for this species on the summit of Berwick Law, another 
similar volcanic plug nearby, was without success. This 
appears to be the first indication of this species from south- 
east Scotland. The only other record from Scotland is an 
unconfirmed old record from Aberdeenshire (Reid, 1893). 

Aphelia unitana Hiibner, 1796-99). Larvae feeding in 
folded leaves of Centaurea nigra L., Teucrium scorodonia 
L.,Alchemilla glabra Neygenf. and Viola riviniana Reichb. 
by Meg’s Hill (O.S. NT/4002), Teviothead, Roxburghshire 
(V. c. 80) on 22nd May 1979 produced imagines of Aphelia 
unitana on 8th - 15th August 1979. Identity was confirmed 
from the structure of the @ aedaegus. The forewings were 
whiter, tending more towards silvery-cream than the yellowish 
forewings of Aphelia paleana. Two further males of A. 
unitana were taken in a M.V. light-trap near Northhouse 
(O.S. NT/4406), Teviothead, Roxburghshire during the night 
of 5th/6th July 1979. These seem to be the first confirmed 
records of this species from Scotland. 

Pterapherapteryx sexalata (Retzius, 1783). A fine large 
2 specimen of the Small Seraphim was taken at M.V. light 
on the evening of 28th July 1979 on the birch dominated 
heathland by Cordorcan Farm (O.S. NX/3772), Newton 
Stewart, Kirkcudbrightshire (V. c. 73). South records Perth- 
shire as the only Scottish locality for this species. 


Reference 


Reid, W. (1893) A List of the Lepidoptera of Aberdeenshire and 
Kincardineshire. Swan Sonnenschein & Co., London. 
* 35 Charterhall Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3HS. 


162 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


The Apparent Absence from Britain of Thera variata 
(Denis & Schiffermuller) and Related Changes in the 
Nomenclature 


By the Rev. Davip AGassiz* and BERNARD SKINNER** 


In March 1977 DJLA received from I. Svensson (as 
did several other British Entomologists) a copy of his paper 
drawing attention to the occurrence in Northern Europe of the 
three species Thera obeliscata (Hiibner), Thera variata (D. & 
S.) and a third species which he refers to as Thera albonigrata 
(Hofer). 

We have since studied other publications on this group, 
notably Krampl (1973) who is followed by most other authors 
and who must be credited with discovering the distinctive 
character in the male antennae. Some papers consider also 
two other closely related continental species: JT. stragulata 
(Hiibn.) and T. bellisi Viidalepp, but we will not treat of 
these as there is little suggestion of their occurrence in Britain. 

Examination of our British specimens of ‘variata’, showed 
them to be referable to Svensson’s albonigrata, a conclusion 
reached independently by E. C. Pelham-Clinton in Edinburgh 
at about the same time. 

We have examined all the specimens of ‘variata’ in the 
British Museum (Natural History) as well as those in many 
private collections from all over the British Isles. In every 
case the same antennal character indicates this third species 
to be the one present in Britain rather than the true variata. 

Because of the close relationship between the species of 
this complex and their extensive variation, the nomenclature 
has become confused. We have therefore made type desig- 
nations where it seemed desirable in order to stabilize the 
names. 


Nomenclature 


Many forms of the species in this group have been 
named and they are listed by Prout (1938). However, the 
International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, Article 1, 
makes it clear that infrasubspecific names have no standing. 
Only if a taxon is described as a species, a subspecies or a 
distinct geographical race is it an available name. 

Hofer (1920) originally described albonigrata simply as 
an ab. of T. variata, and as such the name was not available 
until given distinct specific status by Gornik (1943). Thus, 
Dufay (1978) correctly points out the name as albonigrata 
(Gornik, 1943). Krampl (1979) attributes authorship to 
Osthelder (1929), but it is clear from the context that 
Osthelder uses var. albonigrata in a purely aberrational sense. 

H. J. Turner (1925) described britannica as a ‘new race’, 
and as such it constitutes an available name, the earliest we 


* The Vicarage, Highview Avenue, Grays, Essex RM17 6RU. 
**5 Rawlins Close, Addington, Surrey CR2 8JS. 


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PLATE XIII 


UNDERSIDES OF THERA SPECIES 
Ist row: T. obeliscata. 2nd row: T. variata 
3rd row: T. britannica. 


Y 


APPARENT ABSENCE FROM BRITAIN OF THERA VARIATA 163 


have been able to trace. Since we have found this race to 
be conspecific with albonigrata, a conclusion shared by Dr. 
Krampl, britannica Turner by the law of priority is the name 
which should be used for this species, and albonigrata Gornik 
becomes a junior subjective synonym. 

We have examined material of all forms whose names 
might qualify as available, and have found them all to be 
either later than britannica or else referrable to another 
species. The single exception is diniensis Heinrich; Heinrich 
(1923) describes var. diniensis of Larentia variata from Digne 
as follows ‘‘Wurzel — und Saumfeld stark weisslich tibergossen, 
sonst wie obeliscata Hb.’’ which may be translated “basal 
and distal areas strongly suffused whitish, otherwise as 
obeliscata Hb.” This is rather inconclusive, and as attempts 
to trace Heinrich’s collection have proved unsuccessful, we 
accept the last published opinion, that of Prout (1938), that 
it is a form of obeliscata Hiibn. 


Type Designations 

It is clear from the confusion surrounding this group 
of species that exceptional circumstances exist which warrant 
the designation of a neotype of variata D. & S.. The conditions 
of ICZN Article 75(c) are fulfilled as follows: 

(1) The differences between the species are described 
hereunder as well as in the references cited. 

(2) A specimen () (Plt. XII, fig. 1) bearing a red-ringed 
neotype label and with a data label inscribed ‘C. Hofer 
Austr. inf. Klosterneuberg. Haschb. ex ovo 23.5.19’ is hereby 
designated the neotype of Geometra variata [Denis & 
Schiffermiiller], 1775. 

(3) The collections of Denis & Schiffermiller were 
destroyed by fire as described by Horn & Kahle (1936: 243). 

(4) The specimen designated agrees with D. & S.’s 
original description and may be assumed to correspond with 
specimens in their series. 

(5) The neotype is from the environs of Vienna where 
Denis & Schiffermiiller did most of their collecting. 

(6) The specimen is deposited in the Vienna Natural 
History Museum. 

There are many specimens of Thera britannica from the 
Turner collection in the British Museum (Natural History), 
but only one @ dates from 1924 and may be assumed to 
belong to the original series described by Turner. This 
specimen (Plt. XII, fig. 2) is hereby designated as the lectotype 
and it bears the following labels: 1, ‘Thera britannica Turner, 
lectotype designated D. Agassiz, 1978’. 2, a purple-ringed 
lectotype label, 3, ‘Burrows Coll. Pres. by H. J. Turner, B.M. 
1949-586’ and 4, ‘Southampton 7-v-1924 W. Fassnidge’. 

Because of the great variability of the species of Thera 
under consideration it is not easy to give constant distinct 
characters by which they may be separated, although the 
markings of the forewings will often give a clue. 


164 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


The best structure from which determination can be made 
is undoubtedly the shape and size of the middle segments 
of the male antennae, though even here it is important that 
they are looked at from the right angle. They can be 
distinguished with the aid of a high powered hand lens, 
better still with a microscope. 

Other differences do exist and they are given with great 
accuracy by Dufay (1978) and Krampl (1973). These comprise 
precise measurements in the genitalia as well as particular 
features in the wing pattern, colour and size. Most of the 
differences are of a comparative nature and are therefore 
not very helpful in determining an isolated specimen, although 
they are adequate to prove the distinctiveness of the species; 
for example the valves of the @ genitalia of variata are 
longer and less indented on the costa than britannica. 

The life histories also show differences but again there 
is sufficient variation of habit for this alone to be unreliable 
even the eggs have been shown by Krampl & Novak (1979) 
to be different dimensions yet there is still some overlap. 

As a result we have not gone into great detail to describe 
differences which may elude the average amateur, students 
with more sophisticated techniques available to them are 
referred to the papers cited. We merely mention briefly the 
chief differences and figure the o' antennae and the under- 
sides which show the most striking differences. 


Thera variata Denis & Schiffermiiller 

Middle segments of ¢@ antennae uniformly cylindrical, 
their length much greater than their width (Plt. XII, fig. 5). 
Wingspan on average slightly smaller than britannica, average 
go 23 mm. ? 27 mm., forewings with the subterminal line 
more strongly dentate, generally more variegated and par- 
ticularly noticeable is the greater contrast on the underside. 

The principal foodplant is Spruce (Picea abies), but the 
larva is said to feed also on other conifers. The larva is 
described by Gornik as ‘grey-green and matt with white 
lateral stripes, like the underside of fir leaves’. 

T. variata is widely distributed in Europe and Asia, but 
because many records may refer to britannica the exact range 
is not yet clear. It is certainly well known in central Europe, 
it has been recorded from Denmark and Sweden, and also 
from parts of France; it is interesting to note that Dufay 
finds it absent from the region of Lyon and it may be that 
britannica is the commoner species in North-West France. 
It is most remarkable that we have not been able to trace a 
single specimen from the British Isles, the reason for this 
must remain a matter for conjecture; with the increasing 
amount of Spruce afforestation it would be wise for British 
entomologists to remain vigilant in case the species should 
appear. 


Thera britannica Turner (= albonigrata Gornik) 
Middle segments of male antennae strongly indented, 


APPARENT ABSENCE FROM BRITAIN OF THERA VARIATA 165 


their length scarcely greater than their width (Plt. XII, fig. 6). 
Wingspan slightly greater than variata, average g¢ 25 mm. 
@ 29 mm. In British specimens the ground colour is pre- 
dominantly grey, but sometimes more brownish; we believe 
this variation in ground colour has given rise to the naming 
of two different subspecies, but we have found no evidence 
to support such action. There is usually a white edge each 
side of the central band of the forewings and the subterminal 
line is whitish and somewhat indented, the pattern is generally 
more variegated than obeliscata and this shows on the 
underside where britannica is more contrasted, but less so 
than variata. On the continent this species has a more 
strongly contrasted form, especially in the South and East 
of Europe; the form described by Hofer has whitish ground 
colour with black central band (Plt. XII, fig. 3). 

On the continent the preferred foodplant is said to be 
Fir (Abies spp.) c.f. Svensson (1975), however in our experi- 
ence in Britain, it most often feeds on Douglas Fir 
(Pseudotsuga menziesii) but also Norway Spruce (Picea abies); 
it will occasionally choose Sitka Spruce, Larch or even 
Western Hemlock. The larva is described by Gornik (in 
contrast to variata) as ‘green and glossy, with yellow lateral 
stripes, like the upperside of Fir leaves’, a fuller description 
is given by Haggett (1968), with a coloured illustration. 

T. britannica is widespread throughout Europe, occurring 
in Scandinavia and throughout France, but because of 
confusion with variata the picture is not yet complete. In 
Britain it is common in South and West Britain, including 
Southern Ireland; there are records from the Highlands of 
Scotland and from the Western Isles, but it is much more 
scarce and local in the North. 


Thera obeliscata Hiibn 

Middle segments of @ antennae slightly indented (Plt. 
XII, fig. 7). Forewings generally less variegated than in the 
other two species, with the edges of the central band and the 
subterminal line straighter, and usually without white edging. 
The colour is normally a characteristic chestnut brown, 
though melanic specimens are greyish black and sometimes 
the ground colour becomes orange-brown. The underside is 
plainer than either of the preceeding species. 

The normal foodplant is Pine, although larvae can be 
found on almost any other conifer. In their last instar they 
can be distinguished by the reddish legs. 

T. obeliscata is widely distributed throughout Europe 
and is generally common in Britain wherever Pine occurs. 


Acknowledgements 


Our thanks are due to D. S. Fletcher of the British 
Museum (Natural History) for constant advice, to Dr. F. 
Kasy of the Naturhistorisches Museum, Wien for loan of 
type material and to the following for papers, information 


166 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


and specimens: Dr. F. Krampl, Mr. I. Svensson, Mr. J. 
Heath, Mr. O. Karsholt & Mr. P. Svendsen. 


References 


Dufay, C. 1978. Thera albonigrata (Gornik) espéce Francaise meconnue 
(Lep. Geometridae Laretiinae). Entomops No. 46, pp. 185-196. 
Gornik, F. 1942. Larentia variata Schiff., L. obeliscata HB., L. 
stragulata HB und L. albonigrata Hofer als einige gute Arten. Z. 

Wien. Ent. Ver. 27 S. 69-72. 

Haggett, G. M. 1968. Larvae of the British Lepidoptera not figured 
by Buckler, Part VIII, Proc. Trans. Br. ent. nat. Hist. Soc. 1: 
2-95 

Heinrich, R. 1923. Beitrag zur Makrolepidopterenfauna von Digne 
(Basses Alpes). Dt. Ent. Z. (Beiheft) p. 102. 

Horn, W. & Kahle, I. 1935-37. Uber entomologische Sammlungen, 
Entomologen & Entomo-Museologie. Ent. Beih. Berl.-Dahlem, 
2-4, VIII, 12, 536 pp. 

Krampl, F. 1973. Taxonomische Kriterien fiir die Arten Thera variata 
(Den. et Schiff.), 7. stragulata (Hb.) und T. albonigrata (H6fer) 
(Lepidoptera, Geometridae). Acta ent. bohemoslov. 70: 272-281. 

Krampl, F. & Novak, I. 1979. Eggs of the Central European species 
of Thera (Lepidoptera, Geometridae) Acta ent. bohemoslov. 78: 
231-243. 

Prout, L. B. 1938. in Sietz, A. Macrolepidoptera of the World, Fauna 
paleartica, Supplement (Stuttgart) pp. 112-113. 

Svensson, I. 1975. Cidaria (Thera) albonigrata Hofer, en i norra Europa 
forbisedd art (Lep. Geometridae).Ent. Tidskr. 96: 60-62. 

Turner, H. J. 1925. A new race of Cidaria (Thera) variata, Schiff. 
Ent. Rec. 37: p.25. 

Urbahn, E. 1974. Uber Artberechtigungen inner halb der Thera 
variata — Gruppe (Lep. Geom.). Ent. Berichte 1974 : 97-105. 
Greiz. 


CATOPSILIA FLORELLA F.: LARVAL COLORATION. — I do 
not think Messrs. N. J. and A.C. Derry are correct when they 
describe the larva of C. florella as dimorphic (1979, Ent. Rec., 
91: 276). The differences between the green and yellow larvae 
is due solely to the food, leaves or flowers, on which they 
have fed, and if larvae are transferred from flowers to leaves 
they will turn green. Presumably the green pigment is a 
chlorophyll derivative, which the larvae cannot manufacture 
when feeding on the chlorophyll-free flowers. Some years 
ago I carried out a fairly extensive series of experiments on 
this point, I had also hoped to rear larvae on the flowers of 
of the pink-flowered Cassia spp., but unfortunately my trees 
bloom during the period of minimal abundance of florella. 

Possibly the larger size of the pupa, and presumably the 
imago, from the yellow larvae resulted from the lesser fibre 
content of the flowers. 

An interesting point that emerged from my experiments 
was that pupae, whether from green or yellow larvae, were of 
exactly the same green tint, indicating that the pupal pigment 
was not the same as the larval. — D. G. SEVASTOPULO, 
F.R.E.S., P.O. Box 95617, Mombasa (Nyali), Kenya. 


167 
Hydroptila occulta (Eaton) (Trichoptera: 
Hydroptilidae), a caddisfly new to Ireland with notes 
on Hydroptila martini Marshall 
By J. P. O’Connor! and M. A. O’CoNNOoR? 


In June 1973 while collecting aquatic insects on a small 
stream in Co. Cavan, J. P. O’Connor captured two male cad- 
disflies belonging to the family Hydroptilidae. Both specimens 
were identifiable as Hydroptila occulta (Eaton) using Mosely 
(1939) and Macan (1973). This species had not been previously 
recorded from Ireland. However in 1975 while visiting the 
British Museum of Natural History, Dr. J. E. Marshall in- 
formed him that there were possibly three distinct species 
known as A. occulta in Great Britain. At that time, Dr. 
Marshall was working on the taxonomy of the Hydroptilidae. 

On the 13th June 1976, both authors visited the Co. Cavan 
stream to collect material of ‘‘occulta’’ for Dr. Marshall. The 
chosen day was a sunny one and hydroptilid adults swarmed 
in abundance on rocks and in vegetation beside the running 
water. Over fifty specimens belonging to the “occulta” group 
were obtained. This number was only a tiny proportion how- 
ever of the adult population. We sent most of the specimens 
to Dr. Marshall for determination and she informed us that 
they belonged to a new species which she was then describing. 

Subsequently Dr. Marshall (1977) showed that in addition 
to H. occulta, two closely related species H. martini Marshall 
and H. valesiaca Schmid, occurred in Great Britain. These had 
been previously confused with H. occulta. To-date, only H. 
martini has been recorded from Ireland (Marshall, 1978a, b). 

Over the last few years, we have had the opportunity of 
collecting hydroptilids in several areas of Ireland. This material 
has provided one record of A. occulta and several of H. 
martini. In addition, a re-examination of the 1973 adults from 
Cavan has shown that one of them belongs to the true H. 
occulta. Unfortunately, the genitalia of the other individual is 
missing. Our records for the two species are listed below. 

I. Kilmastulla River, Co. Tipperary. 

In 1976, one of us (M.A.O’C.) was involved in monitoring 
the effects of mine discharge on the Kilmastulla River. Both 
species were found above and immediately below the highest 
point of discharge in June (Irish grid reference R 804726). The 
specimens consisted of male and female pupae which were 
attached to vegetation. Macrophytes are plentiful on the 
heavily silted substratum with Potamogeton, Ranunculus, 
Apium and Callitriche all common. This stretch of the river 
is canalised; it is 5 m wide and 0.5 m deep in summer. It is 
Tich with pH of 7.7 and conductivity of 364. The effluent 
contains heavy metals and organic substances but has not 
mixed significantly with the river water where the pupae 
occurred. Two males of H. occulta were collected further up- 
stream (R 805726) on the 15th June 1976. 

‘National Museum of Ireland, Dublin 2. Ay at 

* Zoological Department, University College, Dublin 4. ° 


168 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


II. Small stream near Bellananagh, Co. Cavan (N 395961). 
This stream provided the first Irish records of both H. occulta 
and H. martini. It is narrow, about one metre in width, and 
consists of small pools, rapids and waterfalls. Macrophytes are 
abundant. Adults of H. martini were very plentiful. In 
addition, hydroptilid pupae and fifth instar larvae were com- 
mon on submerged rocks and vegetation. The specimen of H. 
occulta was captured on either the 16th or 17th June 1973. 

III. Small stream near Drinagh, Co. Wexford (T 056176). 
Five males and one female of H. martini were captured by us 
near a small muddy stream on the 9th June 1978. The 
specimens were crawling about in bright sunshine on the 
leaves of a tree. A deep water-filled quary is situated nearby. 

IV. Small stream near Castlepollard, Co. Westmeath (N 

436754). 

This stream provided the only August (18.8.1978) record of 

H. martini. A single male was taken as it crawled on the 

parapet of a bridge. The stream is a tributary of the Glore 

River. It is generally muddy but an inflowing rivulet has 

formed a small bank of gravel near the bridge. 

Acknowledgement 

We are very grateful to Dr. J. E. Marshall, British 
Museum (Natural History), for confirming our determination 
of H. occulta and for identifying the specimens of H. martini 
from Co. Cavan. 

References 

Macan, T. T., 1973. A key to the adults of the British Trichoptera. 
Scient. Publs. Freshwat. biol. Ass., 28: 151 pp. 

Marshall, J. E., 1977. Hydroptila martini sp. n. and Hydroptila valesiaca 
Schmid (Trichoptera: Hydroptilidae) new to the British Isles. 
Entomologist’s Gaz., 28: 115-122. 

Marshall, J. E., 1978a. Trichoptera Hydroptilidae. Caddisflies (Part 1). 
Provisional atlas of the insects of the British Isles. 8. 

Marshall, J. E., 1978b. Trichoptera Hydroptilidae. Handbk. Ident. Br. 
Insects, 1 (14a): IV, 31 pp. 

Mosely, M. E., 1939. The British caddisflies (Trichoptera): a collector’s 
handbook. Routledge, London. XIII, 320 pp. 


ETHMIA BIPUNCTELLA (FABR.) IN THE ROCHESTER DISTRICT. 
— I took a fine specimen of this moth at my M.V. trap on 
the night of August 17/18 1977, at Upper Delce Farm, 
Rochester (TQ74/65). — ALFRED G. J. BUTCHER, 28, The 
Fairway, Rochester, Kent. [The headquarters of this moth 
is at Dungeness, and it is rarely recorded from elsewhere in 
the county. — J. M. C.-H.] 


TELEIOPSIS DIFFINIS HAWORTH (LEP.: GELECHIIDAE). — 
I was interested in Mr. P. A. Sokoloff’s note on this Gelechiid 
in the Nov./Dec. 1979 issue of the Record. I was at Dungeness 
at the Week-end of 15th/16th September, 1979 and had 
several examples of this species in my trap. I have also had 
it in several Suffolk localities in August and September as 
as in June. — H. E. CHIPPERFIELD, The Shieling, Walbers- 
wick, Southwold, Suffolk. 


169 
Satyrid Spotting Scheme — A Request 


By Dr. R. L. H. DENNIs * 


Preamble 


In the past a considerable amount of detail has been 
collected on physical variation in the butterflies over the 
British Isles. In some cases this has been extended to obser- 
vations of ecological and behavioural differences. However, 
much of this work has been extremely subjective and spas- 
modically collected, — a good deal even speculative. On the 
whole, the result has been a series of subspecies terms vaguely 
determined rather than a careful assessment of variation 
and analysis of its significance. The early work has been 
summarized in Dennis (1977). One of the main problems has 
been that techniques have rarely been used (or at least 
adaquately described) that can be implemented by different 
workers. Also, apart from university research programmes, 
little of the work has been co-ordinated. 

The variation witnessed is both spatial and temporal in 
nature. However, the latter component seems often to be 
forgotten, so that a single season’s data are regarded as 
representative of the population regardless of the year. 
Nevertheless, the variation in characteristics within popu- 
lations from year to year is NOT always so great that 
geographical patterns are lost when samples of butterflies 
taken from different parts of the country are observed from 
different years. Generally these are the most stable and 
distinctive aspects of variation and to the entomologist 
probably the most interesting. They likely reflect important 
historical processes or important selection pressures. 

Aim 

There is no reason why the most significant aspects of 
morphological (or for that matter ecological and behavioural) 
variation cannot be assessed more precisely. In fact, the finer 
details of variation could be ascertained by synoptic recording 
of different populations for the same years as long as a clear 
strategy was devised. Technically, this is no difficult matter, 
but it would require the devoted assistance of many entomol- 
ogists, who may then have to alter their own schedules or 
abandon their own objectives for the period of the survey. 

A much less ambitious objective, which would not result 
in participants losing valuable days in summer away from 
their own interests, would be the recording of particular 
(fully explained) information about specific butterflies and 
the collation and mapping of these data. The nature of areas 
on the map would depend on the survey returns but there is 
clear evidence that sufficient information is available to make 
a pilot scheme worthwhile. The scheme would rely on infor- 


* ‘Remar’, 4, Fairfax Drive, Wilmslow, Cheshire. 


170 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


mation being extracted from butterflies already housed in 
collections and where feasible in the field by capture, mark, 
release techniques. It must be emphasized that butterflies 
should not be killed specifically for the purpose of this survey. 
The intention is to make use of museum and private 
collections. Some contain long series; many contain specimens 
from the same location. It would be a pity if this information 
was not put to good use. 

The insect proposed for a pilot scheme study is the Large 
Heath Butterfly, Coenonympha tullia (Miller). Series of the 
insect, some large, most certainly exist in private collections 
and museums. Variation between colonies is distinctive though 
poorly recorded and spotting details are easily read in the 
field with the use of a hand lens (X 10). 


Recording Method 

Printed index cards (5 X 3 inches) have been prepared 
for the recording of data both regarding essential details 
about each insect e.g., sex, locality, habitat etc.,) and morpho- 
logical details. The card has been constructed so that it can 
be used to record spotting details of all British Satyrids. The 
spot numbers are entered on the card as are the special 
symbols to be used. Noting the status of each spot simply 
involves applying these symbols to the spot numbers. 

Type sheets have also been prepared (comprising two 
diagrams) which fully explain the method of recording. Once 
the data are returned, they will be recorded on punched 
cards, the analyses to be effected by the way of computer. 

The writer will be pleased to issue the explanatory sheets 
and cards (one for each insect) to those who are interested 
in the survey. Full acknowledgement will be given to all 
assisting in the scheme. Precise locations of C. tullia colonies 
will not be published and although space is available on the 
cards for recording six figures references, this can be ignored, 
the decision of participants to withold precise location data 
being entirely respected. 

To date, sets of data have been collected from different 
sources for twenty different locations. However, I would be 
glad to receive additional records and anyone is welcome to 
join in the scheme and make inquiries about it. The following 
areas of the British Isles are poorly represented or as yet 
are not represented at all: Scotland, north of Perthshire, The 
Western Isles of Scotland, Southern Scotland, Cumbria and 
Ireland. Spotting details for European C. tullia and from 
extinct colonies in Britain (e.g., Delamere) would also be 
most valuable. 

Published material on the nature of spotting in C. tullia 
is as yet limited (Turner 1963; Dennis 1972) though the details 
are proving of great interest as revealed in the mapped data 
for North Wales (Dennis 1977). Previous work on other 
butterflies in Britain, such as Maniola jurtina (Linnaeus) 
and Pyronia tithonus (Linnaeus), have led to important 


SATYRID SPOTTING SCHEME—A REQUEST 171 


findings (cf., Ford 1971; Frazer and Wilcox 1975). There’ is. 
of course, important colour and pattern variation in the Large 
Heath butterfly. However because of problems of subjectivity, 
different techniques are being developed to deal with it. 


References 


Dennis, R. L. H., 1972. A biometrical study of a Welsh colony of the 
Large Heath "butterfly, Coenonympha tullia Miller (Rhopalocera). 
Entomologist 105, 313-326. 

Dennis, R. L. H., 1977. The British Butterflies. Their Origin and 
Establishment. E. W. Classey Ltd 

Ford, E. B., 1971. Ecological Genetics. 3rd. ed. Methuen, London. 

Frazer, J. F. D. and Wilcox, H. N. A., 1975. Variation in spotting 
among close relatives of the butterfly, Maniola jurtina. Heredity 
34, 305-322. 

Turner, J. R. G., 1963. A quantitative study of a Welsh colony of the 
Large Heath butterfly, Coenonympha tullia Miller (Lepidoptera). 
Proc. R. ent. Soc. Lond., (A) 38, 101-112. 


CATAPLECTICA FARRENI (WALS.) (LEP.: EPERMENIIDAE) AT 
MUCHALLS, KINCARDINESHIRE, — Cataplectica farreni has been 
recorded infrequently in Britain and is now thought to be 
extinct in England. In Scotland it is known to occur only at 
Muchalls on the north-east coast where the first Scottish 
specimens were caught by Dr. J. R. Langmaid on 26th June 
1975 (Proc. Brit. Ent. Nat. Hist. Soc., 10: 1977). 

I would like to report further finds of C. farreni at 
Muchalls. I caught C. farreni along the Muchalls cliffs on 
24th June and 16th July 1978. Both occasions were warm 
sunny evenings and on the former the moth was abundant 
and several were sitting on the flowers of the umbellifer 
Heracleum sphondylium L. (hogweed). On 11th July last year 
Dr. M. R. Young found three C. farreni at Muchalls, one on 
a leaf and two on flowers of H. sphondylium. 

According to Col. A. M. Emmet (A Field Guide to the 
Smaller Lepidoptera, 1979) the larvae of C. farreni probably 
feed on Pastinaca sativa L. (Wild parsnip). This umbellifer 
is scattered throughout much of England and grows mainly 
on calcareous soils in the south and east but in Scotland it 
only occurs as an escape from cultivation. As far as I know 
P. sativa does not grow at Muchalls. Since imagines were 
observed on H. sphondylium on two separate occasions and 
the larvae of most other Epermeniidae feed on umbellifers 
it is quite possible that H. sphondylium is the food plant of 
the Muchalls moths. 

The repeated finds of C. farreni at Muchalls and, in 
particular, its abundance in 1978 suggest that it is well 
established there. The Muchalls cliffs are by no means unique; 
there are many miles of similar coastline in Kincardineshire 
and elsewhere in north-east Scotland where C. farreni may 
await discovery. 

Dr. M. R. Young and R. M. Palmer kindly identified 
my C. farreni. — Dr. P. D. ENB 10, Raiaer mains Road, 
Muchalls, Kincardineshire. 


172 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


Dermaptera from the Gunong Mulu National Park, 


Borneo 
By A. BRINDLE * 


The Gunong Mulu National Park was designated in 1975 
by the Government of Malaysia for the conservation of an 
area of equatorial forest, including some spectacular limestone 
country, around the mountain of Gunong Mulu (2376 metres) 
in northern Sarawak. The establishment of the National Park 
has led to research in the area initiated by an expedition 
organized by the Royal Geographical Society and the Sarawak 
Forest Department, and among the results many new species 
of insects can be expected. Borneo is relatively little known as 
far as Dermaptera are concerned, although collections of 
these insects from Borneo have been recorded nearly fifty 
years ago (Borelli 1932). I am indebted to Mr. P. Chapman, of 
Bristol, and Dr. N. M. Collins, of the Centre for Overseas Pest 
Research, London, for the opportunity to examine specimens 
of earwigs recently collected in the Gunong Mulu National 
Park. The earwigs collected by Mr. Chapman (numbers 4, 6) 
are associated with caves near the south-western part of the 
Park, whilst those collected by Dr. Collins (numbers 1, 2, 3, 5, 
7) are from forest, including an area on Gunong Mulu itself. A 
number of specimens are immature or females and cannot be 
adequately named but there are two new species described 
below. The purpose of the present paper is to list the species 
found as an initial contribution to the study of the insect fauna 
of the area.. The actual discoverers of new species are not 
always commemorated, so I am pleased to be able to name the 
two new species after their respective collectors. 

In addition to the earwigs as listed, the most common, 
but repulsive insect on the mounds of bat guano in the lime- 
stone caves of the Park, is Arixenia esau Jordan, usually 
classed as belonging to the sub-order Arixenina of the Der- 
maptera (all earwigs in the usual sense belong to the sub-order 
Forficulina). Arixenia occurs in vast numbers and many have 
been collected by Mr. Chapman near the eastern entrance to 
Qua Payau (Deer Cave) alt. 100 m) in March and April 1978: 
specimens of these are now in the British Museum Natural 
History) (BMNH) and the Manchester Museum (MM). 
Carcinophoridae 

Brachylabiinae 

1. Brachylabis collinsi sp. n. 

Almost blackish-brown, shining; antennae with some dis- 
tal segments yellowish-white (9-10 or with part of 8); femora 
pale at apices, tibiae and tarsi yellowish, tibiae sometimes 
darker basally. Cuticle very strongly, closely, and deeply 
punctured, rugose on head and pronotum, head rather less 
strongly punctured than pronotum where the punctures are 
large, deep, and almost in contact, the cuticle between the 


*Entomology Department, Manchester Museum, University of Man- 
chester, Manchester, M13 9PL. 


PLATE XIV 


Figs. 1, 5, 8, 1. chapmani, male, male genitalia, and female forceps. 
Figs. 2, 3, 4, 6, male forceps of I. nitidipennis, I. bicuneatus, I. pygidi- 
atus, and I. gracilis. Figs. 7, 9, B. collinsi, male genitalia and male. 
Fig. 10, G. oblita, male genitalia. 


‘ty mgt. ois 
Rog! bee) ie 
hed By i) eee 
eur 5 Tei 


Mri} 
, a 


ba Meg iagEe 


2? 


DERMAPTERA FROM GUNONG MULU NATIONAL PARK 173 


punctures forming irregular ridges; mesonotum similar to pro- 
notum but metanotum less rugose; each abdominal tergite 
with very large and deep punctures except anteriorly, the 
cuticle between the punctures not rugose but smooth and 
shining, puncturation strongest anteriorly; anterior part of 
each tergite, except first, finely punctured and on anterior 
tergites raised into transverse ridges contrasting with rest of 
cuticle; on posterior tergites the cuticle becomes less raised 
and more or less on a level with rest of tergite. 

Male (fig. 9): head transverse, eyes very large; first 
antennal segment long, second transverse, segments 3-5 with 
ratio of length = 14: 1-14 : 14-14. Pronotum transverse, 
mesonotum with sides parallel, metanotum with sides curved. 
Legs long. Each branch of forceps almost cylindrical in cross 
section, slightly wider at base, simple. Posterior margin of 
penultimate sternite rounded with small median excision. 
Genitalia fig. 7. Length of body 7.5 mm, forcepts 1 mm. 

Female: similar to male, puncturation and rugosities less 
prominent. 

Holotype 3, Sarawak, Gunong Mulu National Park, west 
ridge of Gunong Mulu in Lower Montane Forest (1,310 m), 
N. M. Collins (BMNH); allotype 2 same data except in Mixed 
Dipterocarp Forest (500 m). Paratype o, data as allotype, 
except altitude 220 m February-March 1978. 

Most genera of the Brachylabiinae were established on 
African species; most of these genera having now been 
synonymized (Brindle, 1978), so the above species is placed in 
Brachylabis as temporary measure. The species is distinct from 
all other known Oriental species by the very deeply and 
strongly punctured cuticle and the small size. 

Carcinophorinae 

2. Gonolabis oblita Burr 
Gonolabis oblita Burr: Borelli, 1932: 181 (Sarawak). 

Gunong Mulu National Park, in Mixed Dipterocarp 
Forest and Lower Montane Forest on west ridge of Gunong 
Mulu (130-1,130 m) February-March 1978, 2 ¢@, 39, and 
immatures, N. M. Collins (BMNH and MM). 

Also recorded from Java, Sumatra, and the Philippine 
Islands. The present identification is based on the similarity 
of the male genitalia (fig. 10) to that of oblita as figured in 
Burr (1915, fig. 7, pl. XID. 

3. Epilandex burri (Borelli) 
Epilandex burri (Borelli): Borelli 1932: 181 (Sandakan, 
Borneo). 

Gunong Mulu National Park, Alluvial forest at the base 
of Gunong Mulu (65 m), February-March 1978, 1 9, N. M. 
Collins (BMNH). 

Also recorded from Ceylon and Thailand. 

Labiidae 
4. Parapericomus sp. 

Gunong Mulu National Park, Lubang Sungei Payau 

(Deer Water Cave) beneath cobbles covered with faeces of 


174 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


cave swiftlets close to stream, March-April 1978, 3 9, P. 
Chapman (BMNH and MM). 

The genus Parapericomus Ramamurthi (1967) is distinct 
in the Labiidae by having lateral longitudinal ridges on the 
elytra and the elytra being rugose and pubescent. The females 
of the only known species, P. noonadanae Ramamurthi, from 
the Bismarck Islands are different to the present females, but 
males are desirable before describing the present species as 
new. 


5. Auchenomus setulosus Burr 

Gunong Mulu National Park, Kerangas (tropical heath) 
forest, near the Melinau Gorge (190 m), February-March 
1978, 1 0, N. M. Collins (BMNH). 

Although this was synonymized with A. javanus (Bor- 
mans) in Burr (1911) there seems to be some doubt about the 
validity of this; the present male is referred to setulosus pend- 
ing further study. 


6. Irdex chapmani sp. n. 

Dark brown, antennae and legs dark reddish-brown, 
forceps dark reddish. Head finely punctured, pronotum punc- 
tured but sparsely so on disc, elytra closely punctured, abdo- 
men strongly and more closely punctured, almost rugose 
except last tergite which is nearly smooth. Cuticle pubescent, 
hairs arising from punctures, and hairs longer on pronotum 
and elytra than on head and abdomen, the hairs yellowish to 
brown, semi-erect, directed posteriorly. 

Male (fig. 1): head transverse, eyes large; first antennal 
segment rather longer than distance between the antennal 
bases, second segment short, transverse; ratio of segments 3-5 
= 2.5: 2.25 : 2.5. Pronotum longer than broad, slightly 
widened posteriorly; elytra and wings fully developed. Pygi- 
dium conical. Forceps curved, inner side flattened with a 
dorsal and ventral edge, dorsal edge having a tooth near mid- 
point, ventral edge having a small tooth anteriorly and a 
larger one distally; beyond this tooth the edge is dentated. 
Penultimate sternite with posterior margin evenly rounded. 
Genitalia fig. 5. Length of body 12 mm, forceps 6.5 mm. 

Holotype o, Sarawak, Gunong Mulu National Park, 
beneath rocks near south west entrance of Gua Payau (Deer 
Cave), the rocks covered with a thick wet deposit of guano of 
the bat Tadarida mops, March-April 1978, P. Chapman 
(BMNH). 

Female: similar but without visible wings and abdomen 
retracted, forceps, fig. 8. Length of body 8 mm, forceps 3 mm. 

The female is not designated as a paratype since the 
wings are not visible and the size is so much smaller, although 
this is mainly due to the retracted abdomen, and the forceps 
appear unusually long in proportion.. 

Borelli (1932) recorded a few species of Irdex from 
Borneo, two of which were new, and these species are 
separable by the shape of the male forceps (nitidipennis (Bor- 


DERMAPTERA FROM GUNONG MULU NATIONAL PARK ~~ 175 


mans) fig. 2; bicuneatus Borelli, fig. 3; pygidiatus (Dubrony) 
fig. 4;gracilis Borelli fig. 6). There does seem to be some con- 
fusion with stella (Burr), whilst the pygidia of bicuneatus 
varies in shape and that of some specimens seems to be similar 
to that of pygidiatus. Clearly some revision is needed. The 
pygidium of chapmani (fig. 1) is unlike those of the other 
Borneo species and is similar to those of males from the Philip- 
pine Islands. J. philipensis Ramamurthi, however, was descri- 
bed from females which are much smaller (body 6.5 mm) 
than even the retracted female listed above. Some Philippine 
males are equal in size to chapmani but are distinct, amongst 
other features by the parallel-sided pronotum which is smaller 
than in chapmani. 
Chelisochidae 

7. Hamaxas feae (Bormans) 
Hamaxas feae (Bormans): Borelli 1932: 190 (Sandakan, 
Borneo). 

Gunong Mulu National Park, Lower Montane Forest on 
west ridge of Gunong Mulu (1,130 m), February-March 1978, 
I go, 2°, N. M. Collins (BMNH and MM). 

References 
Borelli, A., 1932. Dermaptéres de Borneo: Dermaptéres du Mont Kina- 
balu. J. Fed. Malay St. Mus., 17: 179-202. 
Brindle, A., 1978. Dermaptera of Africa, Part 2. Ann. Mus. Roy. Afr. 
Centr. in 8° Zool., 225: 1-204. 
Burr, M., 1911. Genera Insectorum, 122: 1-112, Bruxelles. 
Burr, M., 1915. The male genital armature of the Dermaptera. J. R. 

micr. Soc., 1915: 521-546. 

Ramamurthi, B. N., 1967. Dermaptera collected by the Noona Dan 
gore in the Philippines and Bismarck Islands. Ent. Medd., 


SPATALISTIS BIFASCIANA (HBn.). — I beat out a rather 
worn specimen of this local Tortricoid from general foliage, 
at Cromers Wood, Sitingbourne, Kent, on July 13th 1979. — 
N. F. Heat, “Fosters”, Detling Hill, Maidstone. 


ON FOODPLANTS OF SATURNIA PAVONIA L. — I noted with 
interest the observations of Mr. J. Briggs in a recent issue 
of this journal. Having worked the area he mentioned for 
several years, I was familiar with pavonia larvae feeding on 
Tormentil (Potentilla erecta L.). The normal foodplant in the 
area is, in my experience, heather (Calluna vulgaris Tes)! 
larvae being common on this in most years. Tormentil 
feeding was noted mainly in years when the heather was 
late in shooting, due to a dry spring or cold conditions. 
Perhaps ovipositing females lay on, or adjacent to Tormentil 
under such conditions? 

Another foodplant not mentioned in P. B. M. Allan’s 
Larval Foodplants is Great Burnet (Sanguisorba officinalis). 
This a regular foodplant with meadow Sweet (Filipendula 
ulmaria) on a marshy heath site in Oxfordshire. It would 
be interesting to know if pavonia also feeds in nature on 
other members of the Rosaceae family. — K. Porter, 29, 
Snebro Road, Mirehouse, Whitehaven, Cumbria CA28 8DT. 


176 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


Some Records of Curculionidae (Coleoptera) from 
Cumbria Collected in 1978 


By R. W. J. Reap * 

During 1978 I made a number of collecting trips to some 
interesting sites in Cumbria mainly to collect Curculionoidae 
and also make biological and ecological observations on 
certain species. Most of the sites visited were in West Cumbria 
and, in particular, the coastal areas between Maryport and 
Haverigg were more intensively worked. 

Records and brief notes of the more interesting and 
local species taken are given here, together with some ad- 
ditional records of Curculionidae previously recorded by me 
as new to vice county 70 Cumberland. With the exception 
of one species, the following were recorded from the county 
by F. H. Day (The Coleoptera of Cumberland, 1923, Trans. 
Carlisle nat. Hist. Soc., 3, 99-105). 

Otiorhynchus desertus Rosenhauer. — One specimen was 
taken by grubbing at the base of a large plant of Plantago 
maritima L. by the side of a cliff top path near St. Bees, on 
the South Head on 30th of September. Day (l.c.; 99) recorded 
the species from Carleton, Castle Carrock Fell (Murray) 
and Easby. Two specimens from the county in the Day 
collection at Tullie House Museum Carlisle bear the following 
data, St. Bees 16.vii.26 and Orton, 20.4.15 (J. Murray). 

Trachyphloeus aristatus (Gyllenhal). — I took two 
specimens at the base of Plantago coronopus L. and P. lance- 
olata L. on sandy soil at the foot of a sand hill by the River 
Ehen near Braystones on the 7th of October. Several 
specimens of J. bifoveolatus Beck were also taken at this 
site by grubbing at the base of P. lanceolata. The species of 
this genus are mainly nocturnal in habit. Adults are rarely 
seen on the plants during the daytime and in a recent 
interesting note by A. A. Allen (1978, Ent. Rec., 90: 175) 
T. bifoveolatus was observed at night to be attracted in large 
numbers to a street lamp. When kept in captivity for a short 
time at home, I observed the above two species to feed quite 
extensively on provided leaves of P. coronopus and P. lance- 
olata, and feeding was mainly confined to the edges of each 
leaf where they made regular notch marks. It is possible 
that species of Plantago may be among the main hostplants 
for these weevils. From my experience in West Cumbria, 
Trachyphloeus species seem to favour sandstone and limestone 
areas on the coast. 

Polydrusus chrysomela (Olivier). — This species occured 
in numbers on the saltmarsh near Esk viaduct, Ravenglass 
on thel7th of June. Most specimens were found by grubbing 
at the base of Plantago maritima L. and several were found 
feeding on the edges of the leaves where they made distinct 
notch marks. A number of other plants of P. maritima were 
found with similar feeding on the leaves and adults were 


* 43 Hoily Terrace, Hensingham, Whitehaven, Cumbria CA28 8RF. 


RECORDS OF CURCULIONIDAE FROM CUMBRIA 1978 NTT 


found at the base. One pair in copula was also found at the 
base of one plant of P. maritima on saltmarsh on the same 
day by the River Esk estuary near Waberthwaite Church. 
Nearly all specimens seen were in good condition and varied 
from green to a golden brown. Artemisia vulgaris L. is 
usually given as the foodplant of P. chrysomela in the 
literature. 

P. flavipes (Degeer). — One specimen was beaten from 
a mature oak on the edge of Sowerby Wood near Dalston 
on the 15th of July and one other was beaten from silver 
birch. Day (/.c.: 100) recorded the species from Orton and 
Kingmoor and stated ‘very local’. P. flavipes can be confused 
in the field with the more common P. pterygomalis Boheman. 
A character useful in separating the two species is the absence 
of the prominent ridge above the eyes in P. flavipes. In the 
same wood I took one specimen of Magdalis phlegmatica 
(Herbst) by beating large bushes of Calluna vulgaris growing 
near to pines along the main ride. This essentially northern 
species was recorded by Day (/.c.: 105) from Orton Durdar 
and Kirkbampton. Several specimens of Anoplus roboris 
Suffrian were taken at this same site by beating alder saplings 
together with a few adults of Rhynchaenus stigma (Germar). 

Trachodes hispidus (Linnaeus). — One dead specimen 
of this interesting weevil was extracted from samples of oak 
leaf litter and moss collected from an oak wood at Kid Beck 
How near Strands, Wastwater on the 22nd of October. The 
species was recorded by Day (l.c.: 101) and is based on a 
very old record from Carlisle by T. C. Heysham. The eight 
specimens in the Day collection in Tullie House, Carlisle, 
are all from the well known locality Buddon Wood, Leicester- 
shire and were collected by W. Bevins. The labels bear the 
date 8.05. The weevil has been recorded from a number of 
localities in England and Wales, and it was first recorded 
from Scotland by R. A. Crowson (1964, Glasg. Nat., 18, 374), 
who took it by beating oak at Garroch, Dalry, Kirkcud- 
brightshire. The larvae live in the rotting wood of oak and 
various other trees and the larva and pupa have been 
illustrated by Scherf, H. (1964, Abh. senckenb. naturforsch. 
Ges., 506: 170-171). R. A. Crowson (1971, Entomologist’s 
mon. Mag., 107: 254) records taking the larvae under oak 
bark in Roudsea Wood Nature reserve, North Lancashire. 
In a detailed paper, E. C. Zimmerman (1964, Can. Ent., 99: 
1093-1100) first recorded it from America and describes and 
illustrates the adult and also the male and female genitalia 
together with other diagnostic characters. 

Ceuthorhynchidius dawsoni (Brisout). — I took two 
specimens by grubbing at the base of Plantago coronopus L. 
by the side of a cliff footpath at Pattering Holes, St. Bees 
on 30th of September. The species was not recorded by Day 
and in personal communication from Dr. M. G. Morris this 
1s a new county record. Joy (1932, Pract. Handbook of British 
Beetles, 1: 194) states ‘‘very local” and he gives the distri- 


178 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


bution as England, Scotland and Ireland. It was recorded 
from the Isle of Man by H. Britten, (1945, North Western 
Naturalist, 20: 201), who records it in numbers at the roots 
of Plantago maritima L. 

Ceuthorhynchus quercicola (Paykull). — One was beaten 
from a hawthorn hedge by the side of a field near Colmire 
Sough, Wigton on the 10th of June. Day (/.c.: 104) recorded 
it from Wan Fell (Britten), Orton and Cumwhitton. It is 
listed under the old generic name Ceuthorhychideus. The 
weevil is associated with Fumaria officinalis and is scarce in 
Britain. 

C. triangulum Boheman. — One specimen was swept 
from roadside vegetation below a hawthorn hedge near Hall 
Carleton, Drigg on 27th May. This distinctive weevil was 
first recorded from the county by Murray, (1934, Entomol- 
ogist’s mon. Mag., 70: 19) who took it at Floriston near the 
Scottish border south of Gretna on nettle. Joy (/.c.: 200) 
states that the species is rare and gives the distribution as 
“England south to Norfolk’. The foodplant Achillea mille- 
folium L. was noted growing at the above site. 

Curculio nucum L. — I was fortunate to beat one fine 
specimen from the low foliage of a mature ash tree growing 
by the side of Black Beck below Robertgate Bridge near 
Calderbridge on the 23rd July. The only record given by 
Day (l.c.: 105) is Blackhall Wood (T. C. Heysham). The 
specimen I took may have strayed from a nearby hazel hedge 
by the side of a cart track below the bridge. 

The following species have been previously recorded by 
me as new to the county and additional records are given 
below. 

Trachyphloeus laticollis Boheman. — This species wrongly 
identified was recorded in error as JT. scabriculus in 1977, 
Entomologist’s Gaz., 28: 71, one near Coulderton, Nether- 
town, NX97/09, 22.iv.78, grubbing at base of Hypochoeris 
radicata L. on railway bank. One Braystones, NX99/06, 
7.x.78 at base of P. lanceolata L. One resting on blade of 
grass and two by grubbing at base of P. coronopus L. on cliff 
top at Pattering Holes, St. Bees, NX95/11, 30.ix.78. Fleswick, 
St. Bees Head, NX94/13, 22.iv.78, one at base of Plantago 
lanceolata L. 

Caenopsis fissirostris (Walton). — All specimens taken 
have been extracted mainly from oak leaf litter and moss. 
Parkbreast Coppice, Nr. Santon Bridge, NY11/00, 26.xi.78, 
four. Kid Beck How, near Strands, NY11/04, 22.x.78, three. 
Birks Wood, near Strands, NY12/04, one. Nicle Wood, 
Silecroft, SD14/81, 14.x.78, one. Near Ellerbeck farm, Birkby, 
SD11/96, 29.x.78, two. 

C. waltoni (Boheman). — Nethertown station, NX98/ 
07, 17.vi.78, one at base of P. lanceolata L. by footpath. One 
at base of P. maritima L. near Pattering Holes, St. Bees, 
NX95/11, 30.ix.78. One grubbing at base of P. lanceolata 
and one at base of Rumex acetosella L. on South Head, 


RECORDS OF CURCULIONIDAE FROM CUMBRIA 1978 179 


Rottington, NX95/12, 22.4.78. Two at base of Hypochoeris 
radicata L. near Fleswick Bay, Rottington, NX94/13, 30.ix.78. 

Sitona ambiguus Gyllenhal. — Eight shaken from Vicia 
sepium L. on bank by road side near Sandwith, Whitehaven, 
NX96/14, 14.v.78. Four on V. sepium L. near High Walton, 
Bigrigg, NX98/12, 17.vi.78. Six shaken from V. cracca L. 
by roadside near Parton, NX98/20, 30.vii.77. Two on V. 
sepium L. near High Godderthwaite, Calderbridge, NY03/06, 
23.vii.78. Clints quarry, Egremont, NY00/12, 6.v.78 one at 
base of V. sepium. Whitelees Wood, Aspatria, NY17/41, 
19.viii.78 one swept from general vegetation by disused 
railway line. Near Saltcoats, Ravenglass, SD07/97, 25.vi.78, 
general sweeping. One tapped from Urtica dioica L. near 
Greenroad Station, Millom, SD19/83, 8.viii.78. In the past 
there has been some confusion between S. ambiguus and S. 
lineellus (Bonsdorff), the latter being known as decipiens 
Lindberg. Kevin, (1962, Entomologist’s mon. Mag., 98: 171) 
explains fully the synonomy of lineellus and B. Noe-Nygaard, 
(1972, Ent. Meddr., 40: 25-27) gives an illustrated account 
of the main taxonomic characters for separating the two 
species. They are punctation marks on the frons and the 
shape of the apex of the median lobe. In my experience of 
S. ambiguus in Cumbria, I nearly always find it on V. sepium 
growing among general vegetation in inland situations es- 
pecially along roadside verges, while S. lineellus appears to 
be more restricted to coastal habitats and on its foodplant 
Lotus corniculatus L. S. ambiguus has recently been recorded 
as new to Somerset by P. J. Hodge, (1978, Entomologist’s 
mon. Mag., 114: 82). 

Gymnetron antirrhini (Paykull). — Adults have been 
taken on most occasions inside the flowers of Linaria vulgaris 
Miller. Three near Moresby Church, Parton, NX98/21, 
31.vii.77. One near Workington, NX99/30, 26.viii.78. Two 
by River Ellen, Maryport NY03/36, 26.viii.78. Haverigg, 
Millom, SD15/78, 29.vii.78 one resting below flowers of 
Linaria vulgaris on sand dune. Near Silecroft station, SD12/ 
82, 19.viii.78, in numbers on L. vulgaris on railway bank. 

I thank Dr. M. G. Morris, Furzebrook Research Station, 
Dorset, and Dr. R. A. Crowson, Glasgow University for 
confirming the identity of certain species recorded here. I 
also thank Mr. Martindale, Forestry Commission, for giving 
permission to collect in Sowerby Wood and also Mr. Paisley 
for allowing me to collect at the Colmire Sough site. 


AGROTIS EXCLAMATIONIS L. (HEART AND DART) IN MARCH. 
— A fresh specimen of this moth was caught at the M.V. 
light trap at Charterhouse, Godalming, on 12th March 1980. 
Although moths were generally out earlier than usual, this 
does seem an exceptionally early date for this species to be 
on the wing. — M. E vince, Cable House, Horsell Rise, 
Woking, Surrey. 


180 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VII1/80 


Contribution to the Knowledge of Phasmida III. 
Diapause in the eggs of Extatosoma tiaratum 
(MacLeay) 


By ULF CARLBERG * 
Introduction 

E. tiaratum is an Australian stick insect which is now a 
commonly bred species in Europe. 

From Australian stock Korboot (1961) discussed the 
duration of the eggs. She found two types, one which hatched 
after 8 months and another which hatched after 19 months. 
She suggested that the 19 months’ eggs were unfertilised. Later 
Hadlington (1967) showed that parthenogenetic development 
of the eggs occured in the species. 

I used two females, one fertilised and one unfertilised. 
They were reared from eggs bought from a British dealer. 
They were mainly fed on oak, spray daily with lukewarm 
water and kept at 18-24°C. The eggs were kept in air-tight 
plastic boxes. 

In this paper I will give data for the duration of the eggs 
of the European stock, and discuss the difference between the 
duration of the eggs of the Australian and European stock. 

Result 
. The following data were obtained for unfertilised eggs, 
= 27: 
minium duration: 181 days. 
maximum duration: 302 days. 
mean duration with standard error, x + S.E.: 239 + 5 days. 


The following data were obtained for fertilised eggs, 
N = 98: 


minimum duration: 135 days. 

maximum duration: 222 days. 

mean duration with standard error, x + S.E.: 166 + 2 days. 
Discussion 


For the European stock I found the mean duration for 
unfertilised eggs to be 239 days, and Korboot (1.c.) for Aus- 
tralian stock to be 19 months (ca. 570 days). We can estimate 
the time for a generation by the following formulae: 

TG unfert. = DN + POP + DE unfert. (1) 
where TS unfert. is the time for one generation from unfer- 
tilised eggs; DN is the duration of nymphal life; POP is the 
pre-oviposition-period; PE unfert. is the duration of unfertilised 
eggs. All measurements are in days. If we calculate TS unfert. 
for the Australian and European stock (data from Hadlington 
(I.c.), Korboot (l.c.) and Carlberg (a) for specimens with 


normal number of nymphal instars) we get: 
TG wnfert. Aust. = 104 + 26 + 570 = 700 days. 


and 
TG unfert. Europ. = 179 + 39 + 239 = 457 days. 

__ For the Australian stock a two-year cyclic development is 
evident. Hadlington (l.c.) also said that the life cycle could 
be from one to three years. The European stock which is 
* Atlasvagen 53’, S-131 34 Nacka, Sweden. 


CONTRIBUTION TO THE KNOWLEDGE OF PHASMIDA 111 181 
independent of climate (the native stock must be dependent 
on climate cycles in some way or another) shows the time for 
a generation of ca. 15 months, which makes no sense. 

For the European stock I and Chasse (1975) found a mean 
duration for fertilised eggs to be 166 days and 5 months (ca. 
150 days) respectively, while Korboot (l.c.) for the Australian 
stock reported 8 months (ca. 240 days). We can estimate the 
time for one generation by the following formulae: 

tc fert. = DN + Pop + DE fert. (2) 
where TG fert. is the time for one generation from fertilised 
eggs; DE fert. is the duration of fertilised eggs; all other symbols 
as for formulae (1). If we calculate T° fert. for the Australian 
and European stock (with data from the same authors as for 
equation (1)) we get: 

TG fert. Aust, = 104 + 19 + 240 = 369 days. 
and 

TG fert, Europ, = 179 + 39 + 166 = 384 days. 

Both the European and Australian stock shows an one- 
year cyclic development. It is rather surprising that the longer 
nymphal life of the European stok also resulted in an one-year 
year cyclic development. 

Hadlington (l.c.) stated that diurnal fluctuations in the 
temperatures was effective in breaking the pre-embryonic 
diapause. But he made the reservation: ‘“‘but the mechanism 
is by no means clear and could involve other components of 
the environment”. Bergerard (1967) showed that the photo- 
period determinate the duration of the eggs in Carausius 
morosus Sinéty and Baculum extradentatum Brunner von 
Wattenwyl. So the natural components in the environment as 
the photoperiod and the temperature are important factors 
which determinate the duration of the eggs. 

Summary 

The mean duration of 239 days for European unfertilised 
eggs made a complete generation on ca. 15 month. For the 
Australian stock a two-year cyclic development occured. 

The mean duration of 166 days for European fertilised 
eggs made a complete generation on ca. one year. Both the 
Australian and the European stock had an one-year cyclic 
development, but with different duration of nymphal life. 
Even with a longer nymphal life as in the European stock a 
one-year cyclic development occured. 

References 
Bergerard, J., 1967. Variations des caractéristiques du développement 
embryonnaire avec la photopériode d’élevage des femelles pon- 

deuses chez les Phasmides. Ann. Soc. ent. Fr. (N.S.), 3: 567-575. 
Carlberg, U. The number of nymphal instars in Extatosoma tiaratum 

(MaLeay); with a few notes on its biology (Phasmida: Tropido- 

derinae). 

Chausse, G. de, 1975. Tableaux de croissance et de ponte d’une 
femelle d’Extatosoma tiaratum. Bull. Soc. Sc. Nat., 9: 10-11. 
Hadlington, P., 1967. Parthenogenesis and diapause in the eggs of the 

Phasmatid Extatosoma tiaratum (MacLeay). J. Ent. Soc. Aust. 

(N.S.W.), 3: [1966] 59-65. 

Korboot, K., 1961. Observations on the life histories of the stick insects 


Acrophylla_ tessellata Gray and Extatosoma tiaratum MacLeay. 
Univ. Queensland Papers (Entomology), 1: 159-170. 


182 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


Possible Anti-mating Signals in the Speckled Wood 
(Pararge aegeria L.) 


By (Lh? HoT? Parcs, BSe!> 


Introduction 

During observation of the courtship of a pair of 
Speckled Woods on 16th August 1976, an apparent posture 
signal on the part of a gravid female seemed to have the 
remarkable effect of immediately causing the male to fly 
off without having mated, allowing the female to continue 
egg laying, This behaviour was again observed three days 
later, exactly the same cycle of events being repeated. 

The location was a bridlepath bordered by trees and 
tall hedges on both sides, well frequented by this species in 
most years, there being a considerable increase in abundance 
in 1976 


The Observations 

A male and female were seen in a typical spiral courtship 
flight along the bridlepath. After continuing in this manner 
for several minutes the female settled on a large leaf about 
one foot from the ground and the male came down nearby. 
As the male approached from the rear, the female closed 
its wings vertically above its body into the settled position, 
but then tilted the wings and body sideways considerably to 
make an acute angle with the leaf surface, in a manner 
most reminiscent of the Grayling (Hipparchia semele L.). 
The male immediately flew off and was not seen to approach 
the female again, which after a couple of minutes flew up 
and was observed egg laying low amongst the grass stems. 
This behaviour was again observed on the 19th August, 
and once more the male flew off immediately the female 
closed ots wings and tilted sideways. In both cases the female 
was seen to start oviposition after a few minutes, and the 

male made no further attempt at courtship. 


Inferences 

It would perhaps be unwise to draw too many firm 
conclusions from only two observations, but if for the 
moment we disregard the possibility of the behaviour ob- 
per ved being sheer coincidence, two explanations spring to 
mind. 

At first, in view of the similarity of the female posture 
to the well known camouflage position adopted by the 
Grayling when settled, it was thought that the females were 
making use of the well disguised patterns to disappear from 
the males view. However, in view of the close proximity of 
the insects, only a few inches in each case, I now feel this 
is unlikely. The other explanation is that this is a definite 
signal, allied to signals and behaviour used in the courtship 


of some species, but in this case for the opposite effect. 
* Tole House, Broadhill Farm, Keymer, Hassocks, Sussex. 


POSSIBLE ANTI-MATING SIGNALS OF SPECKLED woop 183 


Any such signal is unlikely to have evolved unless it 
confers upon the species some definite advantage, and in 
this case a signal of this sort would appear to be of benefit 
in terms of an increase in reproductive potential from: 

(a) Permitting fertilised females to minimise disturbance 
of their egg laying activities by over-eager males, cutting 
short unwanted and unnecessary courtship. 

(b) Increasing the likelihood that unwanted females will 
be sought out by the males, as females already mated will 
deter further courtship by means of the signal, causing the 
males to continue in search of a more attractive and more 
willing partner. 


Future Study 


The season of 1977 proved most disappointing, and since 
then pressure of work has prevented me from spending 
sufficient time in the field to note this behaviour again. 
Further study is badly needed in order to confirm, or refute, 
my findings. 

I would be most grateful to hear from anyone who 
observes, or has observed in the past, this behaviour, or has 
any views on the subject. I hope to publish a future paper 
on this matter when more observational data is forthcoming. 


EarwWIG’s MULTIPLE EGG-Broop. — On April Ist, 1979, 
I was fascinated to discover a female earwig (Forficula 
auricularia L.) protecting eggs in the deep cavity left by the 
removal of a large stone on the site of a ruined farmhouse 
at Eythrope, Stone, in Bucks. The egg chamber was made 
vertically at the edge of the cavity, and the interesting thing 
is that while the female could be seen protecting one batch 
of eggs in a cavity at the bottom of the nest tunnel, there 
was another chamber at the top (surface level) containing 
a further batch of eggs. Would this have been some kind of 
predator- protection device, or a means of preventing fungoid 
infection and its spread perhaps,? There were, incidentally, 
two further egg batches in chambers at either end of the 
cavity, perhaps eight inches away from the main tunnel, and 
since no female was in attendance one wonders if these too 
were the central female’s. I would estimate that each of the 
four batches contained some 30-40 eggs, but not having taken 
down precise details at the time this is merely an approxi- 
mation. I have, by the way, reared the common earwig on 
several occasions and have been interested to note their 
omnivorous nature. They readily consume dead insects, as 
well as scraps of cat meat! Some time ago I found an adult 
consuming the flesh of a dead blackbird. Incidentally, has 
any reader ever come across any direct evidence for earwigs 
entering the human ear — or seen one flying? The lesser 
earwig, Labia minor, flies readily, of course. — ANTHONY 
Wootton, Stone, Bucks. 


184 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIIl/80 


A new species of Homoeosoma Curtis (Lepidoptera: 
Phycitinae) from North India 


By H. S. Rose’ and S. S. DHILLON? 


Introduction and Observations 

Of the seven species described by Hampson (1896) under 
the genus Homoeosoma Curtis, only two species viz., albovit- 
tella Ragonot and punctistrigella Ragonot are recorded from 
North-West India. During the survey of Phycitid moths from 
North India, the authors collected seventeen species belonging 
to twelve genera of this group. A critical examination of 
the entire material also lead to the discovery of three new 
species from the lot collected from this area. One of these 
species is clearly referable to the genus Homoeosoma and is 
quite distinct from all the other species belonging to this 
genus (Hampson, 1896, 1926, 1929, 1930; Ragonot and 
Hampson, 1901; Janse, 1941, 1942, 1944, 1946; Heinrich, 
1956; Roesler, 1965, 1965a, 1966, 1966a, 1970; Amsel, 1970; 
Whalley, 1970). In the naming of the different components 
of genitalia, the terminology used has been according to the 
one given by Klots (1970). The present communication 
reports the description of Homoeosoma sadhopullensis, sp. 
nov. 
Genus: Homoeosoma Curtis, Entoml. Mag., 1, p. 190 (1833). 

Homoeosoma sadhopullensis sp. nov. (Figs. 1-7). 


Head: Vertex white, irrorated with minute light pale scales; frons 
rounded , smoothly clothed with whitish pale scales. Antennae shorter 
than fore wing; scape more or less oval in shape, furnished with brown 
scales; flagellum thick and finely ringed with brown scales, minutely 
pilose in male. Eye pitch black, with a row of brown scales behind. 
Ocellus poorly defined. Labial palpus upturned, reaching above vertex 
of head; first segment medium sized, second longest, third shorter than 
latter and acuminate; all segments covered with white scales, with 
brown suffusion on surface facing the head. Maxillary palpus filiform, 
covered with brown scales. Proboscis long, furnished with scales at 
Ber. Posterior margin of head adorned with loosely arranged white 
scales. 

Thorax white both dorsally and ventrally. 


Legend 


1-7, Homoeosoma sadhopullensis sp. nov., 1, Photograph of the 
adult; 2, Fore wing; 3, Hind wing; 4-6, parts of male genitalia; 7, 
Female genitalia. 


Abbreviations 


1A, First anal vein; 2A, Second anal vein; 3A, Third anal vein; 
ANT. APO, Anterior apophyses; CO, Costa; CRP. BU, Corpus bursae; 
Cu,, First cubital vein; Cu:, Second cubital vein; DU. BU, Ductus 
bursae; GN, Gnathos; JX, Juxta; M,, First median vein; M:: Second 
median vein; M;, Third median vein; OVP, Ovipositor; PO. APO, 
Posterior apaphyses; R:, First radial vein; R:, Second radial vein; R,. 
Fourth radial vein; Rs, Radial sector; Sc, Subcosta; Sc + Rz,, Stalk of 
Sc and R:; SL, Sacculus; TG, Tegumen; TRA; Transtilla; UN, Uncus; 
VIN, Vinculum; VLV, Valva. 


‘and * Department of Zoology, Punjabi University, Patiala-147002, India 


PLATE XV 


PU hee 
] Nias 
TA laste okes 


NEW SPECIES OF HOMOEOSOMA FROM NORTH INDIA 185 


Fore wing: Long and narrow; anterior margin straight, curved 
towards apex; apex rounded; termen somewhat curved and oblique; 
tornus broadly rounded; posterior margin straight. Ground colour 
greyish white, scarcely irrorated with fuscous; the costal margin uni- 
formly fuscous; a group of fuscous scales at middle of cell, sometimes 
obscure; some fuscous suffusion behind the cell; a fuscous and irrorated 
with light pale ill defined postmedial line from R, to anal margin, 
angled inwards above M;; marginal fringe white. Discal cell long and 
narrow, much more than half the length of wing. Sc straight; R, 
from well before anterior angle of cell; R. free; Rs; absent; Rs from 
anterior angle of cell; Ms: straight; M: and Ms stalked, stalk slightly 
longer than their free ends; Cu; and Cu, shortly stalked; 2A straight; 
3A present at base. 

Hind wing: Costal margin straight; apex produced and rounded; 
termen curved, much so near tornus; anal angle arched; anal margin 
straight and reduced. Ground colour white, with fuscous suffusion 
near outer area; marginal fringe white. Discal cell slightly less than 
one-third the length of wing; discocellular erect. Rs anastomosing with 
Sc + R; beyond cell to near costal margin; M2 and Cu, from lower 
angle of cell, approximated at base, diverging distally; Cu. from before 
posterior angle of cell; three anals present. 

Legs covered with light brown scales; outer spur on mid tibia 
and that of anterior pair on hind tibia half the length of inner; outer 
spur of distal pair on hind tibia two-third the length of inner spur. 

Abdomen covered with pale brown scales on dorsal surface, with 
the first two segments white scaled; ventral surface fuscofulvous. 

Male genitalia : Uncus broad at base, slightly narrower and 
rounded at distal end, densely setose on lateral sides as well as at 
apex; gnathos present, strongly sclerotized and produced into a central 
projection; tegumen reduced and modified; vinculum long, U-shaped. 
Valva long and broad, truncate at distal end; costa broadly inflated 
and strongly sclerotized throughout its length, slightly produced at 
extreme distal end, with a short sclerotized and setose area at base 
on inner side; sacculus differentiated at ‘base only. Transtilla with 
bars long, curved and finely sclerotized, both being weakly fused at 
distal end; juxta with thin basal band, carrying two well sclerotized, 
almost tubular juxtal plates, the latter unarmed. Aedeagus long, narrow 
and slender; vescia with wrinkled sclerotization at distal end, otherwise 
without any specific cornutus. 

Female genitalia : Corpus bursae oval or ovoid in shape, weakly 
and uniformly sclerotized; signum absent; ductus bursae moderately 
long, membranous, its walls well defined; ostium bursae not surrounded 
by any genital plate; anterior and posterior apophyses moderately 
thick and strongly sclerotized, without any special thickenings any- 
where; the posterior pair longer than the anterior pair; ovipositor 
lobes conical, setose with long and short setae. 

Alar expanse: male, 22 mm. to 26 mm.; female, 22.5 mm. 


Material Examined 


Holotype 10; 40h and 299 paratypes; India, Sadhopull 
(Himachal Pradesh), at light. (Collected by H. S. Rose). 
Material deposited in the Department of Zoology, Punjabi 
University, Patiala- 147002 (India). 


Remarks 
The species falls closer to Homoeosoma punctistrigella 
Ragonot collected from undivided Punjab (Hampson, 1896), 
however, differing from the same in not possessing an ante- 
medial line on the fore wings. The fore wings of puncti- 
strigella Ragonot are clearly marked by three obliquely 
placed dark specks composing the antemedial line. 


186 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


Acknowledgment 


The authors are thankful to Dr. H. R. Pajni of Depart- 
ment of Zoology, Punjab University, Chandigarh who got 
the identity of the species confirmed from Dr. J. D. Bradley 
of British Museum (Natural History), London during his 
recent visit to England. 


References 


Amsel, H. G., 1970. Afghanische quadifine Phycitinae (Lep. Pyralidae). 
Beotr. Naturk. Forsch SudwDtsch.,29 (1): 67-89. 

Hampson, G. F., 1896. Fauna of British India, Moths, 4: 1-594 Taylor 
and Francis Ltd., London. 

Hampson, G. F., 1926. Some new genera and species of Phycitinae 
(Pyralidae) in the British Museum. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., London., 
18(9); 628-634. 

Hampson, G. F., 1929. Five new species of Phycitinae (Lep. Pyralidae). 
Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. London, 4 (10): 351-353. 

Hampson, G. F., 1930. New genera and species of Phycitinae (Lep. 
Pyralidae). Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. London, 5 (10): 50-80. 

Heinrich, C., 1956. American moths of subfamily Phycitinae. Washing- 
ton, Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., 207: 8-581, 1138 Figs. 

Janse, A. J. T., 1941. Contribution to the study of Phycitinae (Lep. 
Pyralidae). Part I. Journ. Ent. Soc. Sthn. Afr. Pretoria, 4: 134-166, 
22 figs. 

Janse, A. J. T., 1942. Contribution to the study of Phycitinae (Lep. 
Pyralidae). Part II. Journ. Ent. Soc. Sthn. Afr. Pretoria, 5: 27-45, 
36 figs. 

Janse, A. J. T., 1944. Contribution to the study of Phycitinae (Lep. 
Pyralidae). Part-II. Journ. Ent. Soc. Sthn. Afr. Pretoria, 7: 1-16, 
13 figs. 

Janse, A. J. T., 1946. Contribution to the study of Phycitinae (Lep. 
Pyralidae). Part-IV. Journ. Ent. Soc., Sthn. Afr. Pretoria, 8 (1945): 
24-48, 23 figs. 

Klots, A. B., 1970. Lepidoptera, in ““ Taxonomist’s Glossary of Genitalia 
in Insects’ (ed. S. L. Tuxen), 2nd. ed. Munksgaard, Copenhagen. 
pp. 115-130. 

Ragonot, E. L. & Hampson, G. F., 1901. Memoires sur les Lepidoptera, 
par N. M. Romanoff. VIII. Monographine des Phycitinae et des 
Gallerunae. 602 pp. 

Roesler, R. U., 1965. Ergebnisse einer. Osterreichischen Lepidopterolo- 
gischen Sammelreise nach Syrien und dem Libanon. Teil II. Der 
Homoeosoma — Ephestia Komplexes (Lep. Phycitidae). Z. Wien. 
Ent. Ges., 50: 70-79, 4 figs. 

Roesler, R. U. 1965a. Chorologische Untersuchungen uben den 
Homoeosoma — Ephestia Komplexes (Lep. Phycitidae) im pala- 
arktischen. Raum. Bonn. Zool. Beitr., 16: 318-349, 40 maps. 

Roesler, R. U., 1966. Die deutschen Arten des Homoeosoma — 
Ephestia Komplexes (Lep. Phycitinae).. Mitt. Munch. Ent. Ges., 
56: 104-160. 

Roesler, R. U., 1966a. Beschreibung Von Neven Texa des Homoeo- 
soma-Ephestia Komplexes (Lepidoptera) Beitr. Naturk. Forsch. 
Sudw.-Dt., 25: 43-69. 

Roesler, R. U., 1970. Oesterrichische Entomologische Expedition nach 
Persian and Afghanistan. Beitrage zur Lepidopteren fauna. Der, 
Homoeosoma-Ephestia Komplex (Lep. Phycitinae). Ann. Natur. 
Hist. Mus. Wien., 74: 399-407. 

Whalley, P. E. S., 1970 A synonymic catalogue of the genera of 
aan of the world. Bull. Brit. Mus. (Nat. Hist.) London Ent., 
25: 33-72. 


187 


The Use of Portable 40-Watt Ultraviolet Fluorescent 
Tubes for Attracting Insects 


By Dr. RONALD S. WILKINSON * 


In two papers published well over a decade ago(Wilkin- 
son, 1966a, 1966b), I described for British entomologists the 
widespread and well-established American use of 15-watt 
fluorescent tubes for the attraction of insects. (The British 
equivalents were: American “BL” or actinic blue, Philips 
TL 20/05. American “BLB” or black light, Philips 20/08.) 
For the theory and details of this method of attraction, which 
requires an ordinary short wall or ceiling fixture, a pair of 
inexpensive fluorescent tubes, and a DC-AC convertor which 
may be inserted by means of its accompanying device into 
the cigar lighter of an automobile or clipped to its storage 
battery (the convertor I have always used is an American- 
made Workman Transverter BX125), I refer readers to the 
extensive discussions cited above. 

The traditional procedure, which has been used for 
many years by American collectors, is to drape a bedsheet 
over the bonnet and windscreen of one’s automobile, and 
place the 15-watt tube in its fixture in a convenient position 
on the sheet, usually at the base of the windscreen. Of course 
numerous variations have been used, with a waterproof 
extension cord and various means of support for the sheet. 
Before and after my 1966 studies, entomologists have dis- 
cussed the varying results with BL (unfiltered) and BLB 
(filtered) tubes, but a conclusive study of relative values has 
not been published for the general reader, and will not be 
attempted here. 

Since 1967 I have experimented and collected widely with 
larger fluorescent tubes. The most powerful and successful 
ones I have used with the aid of my automobile are the 40- 
watt General Electric ultraviolet BL tubes. These are of 
greater length (about 113 centimetres) and create a consider- 
ably greater radius of luminosity than the small 15-watt tubes. 
Although attraction to UV is now known to be determined 
by various factors, it is very obvious from experience that 
the larger 40-watt tubes attract many more moths than their 
15-watt counterparts. As might be expected, other orders of 
insects are also attracted in greater numbers. 

The large size of the 40-watt tube when mounted in its 
fixture makes it somewhat unwieldy, and I have invented my 
own support for the ones I use (although more mechanically 
clever readers may devise something better). I attach a 
horizontal bar to the adjustable support of a home motion 
picture screen, and the fixture as well as the bedsheet are 


Ty ee Museum of Natural History, New York, New York 


188 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


hung from the bar, while the remainder of the sheet as well 
as a second sheet is placed on the ground. Alternately, in 
very exposed situations, the fixture may simply be laid on 
the sheet at the point where it reaches the earth. (The 
additional horizontal sheet is very useful due to the propensity 
of various moths to fly in and rest at differing distances from 
the tube.) The fixture itself is connected to the convertor 
(which is ideally protected within the car) by a waterproof 
extension cord. By varying the length of the cord and the 
arrangement of the apparatus, one can adapt to various 
conditions, and with the 50 or 100-foot cords which I 
commonly use, the apparatus can be used at a little distance 
from the roadway or forest path where the car is parked, 
and it is even possible to collect on a hill or in a nearby ravine. 

The automobile I have used in twelve years’ collecting 
with 40-watt tubes is a 1967 Triumph GT-6 sports car, utilising 
a heavy duty 12-volt battery. Even when using the tube for 
four hours at a time, as I often do because of the habits of 
the genus I study, I have never had the slightest difficulty 
starting the car afterward, and have only replaced the battery 
three times since 1967. The results have been more than 
satisfactory, and add to the realisation that an expensive, 
cumbersome and noisy petrol generator or very small UV 
lamps, are not always necessary for collection at light in 
out-of-the-way places, as long as the site is approachable by 
vehicle. Of course the nature of my car makes driving over 
rough terrain impossible: a traditional car would be more 
suited to the method, but at least it has been proven over 
a satisfactory length of time that large tubes can be used in 
British vehicles with success and without fatal battery drain 
which might otherwise leave the collector stranded far from 
home. 

In a comment on one of my previous papers, Heath 
(1966) envisioned a possible danger: ‘“‘the ordinary fluor- 
escent wall or ceiling fittings are quite unsuitable for use in 
the field and could be dangerous as they do not conform 
to the safety requirements for this type of use.” I suppose 
it is theoretically possible that one could accidentally receive 
a shock from this equipment, for example if it were unshielded 
and carelessly used in a rain shower. However, the method 
has been used in the United States for so many years without 
a single accident known to me or to any of the numerous 
American lepidopterists I have queried since Mr. Heath’s 
comment, that I suspect the much greater danger to be that 
of driving to and from the site. In fact, the only distress 
encountered by American users of ultraviolet equipment is 
its propensity to attract visitors other than insects. Because 
of this, every U.V. veteran has had his encounters with 
curious farmers and others, including police (Wilkinson, 
1978). In cases of precipitation, one has only to cover the 
equipment. 

Although I cannot suggest British sources for the large 


USE OF PORTABLE ULTRAVIOLET FLUORESCENT TUBES 189 


tubes I have used with such success, I can at least report 
their use as a matter of record, and hope that vendors of 
similar equipment might be found in the U.K. 


References 

Heath, J. 1966. Fluorescent ‘blacklight’ lamps for collecting insects. 
Bull. amat. Ent. Soc. 25: 95-96. 

Wilkinson, R. S. 1966a. Some American ‘blacklight’ attractors for 
collecting insects. Bull. amat. Ent. Soc., 25: 24-28. 

—___—__—________.,1966b. Further remarks on American ‘blacklight’ 
attractors. Bull amat. Ent. Soc., 25: 93-95. 

ee 1978 eStll) mores hazards of | moth “hunting: 
Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var. 90: 53-54. 


Notes and Observations 


INSECTS FROM CORNWALL, INCLUDING APPARENTLY THE 
First CORNISH LULWORTH SKiPPER. — In the second half of 
July 1979 I spent two weeks with my son’s family in a 
bungalow on the south coast of Cornwall, a quarter of an 
hour’s walk east of the picturesque village of Polperro. This 
was of course not an entomological trip. Moreover the 
weather conditions were not always favourable. Yet I could 
climb several times the path in the direction of the village 
of Talland and collected or noted what I saw. I suspect that 
this part of Cornwall is seldom visited by an entomologist 
and therefore I give a list of the insects caught or observed. 

LEPIDOPTERA. Zygaenidae: Zygaena _filipendulae 
(Linnaeus), several. Gracillariidae: Callisto denticulella 
(Thunberg) (A. M. Emmet det.). Pyralidae: Crambus perlella 
(Linnaeus), C. nemorella (Hiibner), Agriphila tristella (Denis 
& Schiffermiiller), Galleria mellonella (Linnaeus). Ptero- 
phoridae: Stenoptilia bipunctidactyla (Scopoli). Hesperiidae: 
Thymelicus sylvestris (Poda), T. acteon (Rottemburg), a 
fresh male, as far as I know the first capture in Cornwall. 
Lycaenidae: Polyommatus icarus (Rottemburg), a very few. 
Nymphalidae: Vanessa atalanta (Linnaeus), only two. Saty- 
ridae: Pyronia tithonus (Linnaeus) not uncommon, Maniola 
jurtina (Linnaeus) ,the only really common species, Mel- 
anargia galathea (Linnaeus), one close to Polperro. Geometri- 
dae: Jdaea aversata (Linnaeus), Xanthorhoe montanata 
(Denis Schiffermiiller), X. fluctuata (Linnaeus), Scotopteryx 
chenopodiata (Linnaeus), Epirrhoe galiata (Denis & Schiffer- 
miller). Noctuidae: Xestia triangulum (Hufnagel), Cucullia 
chamomillae (Denis & Schiffermiiller), a few caterpillars on 
Matricaria inodora L. (Feverfew), Cryphia domestica (Huf- 
nagel), Autographa gamma (Linnaeus), only a few. The 
most interesting capture is of course Thymelicus acteon, 
far outside the known British range of the species. Although 
the Buddlejas were in full flower, I never saw a butterfly or 
moth on them. 

OTHER INSECTS. DERMAPTERA: Forficula auricu- 
laria Linnaeus. one larva. HOMOPTERA. Aphrophoridae: 


190 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


Phylaenus spumarius (Fallén), in different forms. Cicadellidae: 
Aphrodes makarovi Zachvatkin, Euxelis lineolatus (Kirsch- 
baum). HETEROPTERA. Miridae: Capsus ater (Linnaeus), 
Calocoris norvegicus (Gmelin), Phytocoris varipes Bohemann, 
Stenotus binotatus (Fabricius), Leptoterna dolobratus (Lin- 
naeus). Nabidae: Nabis rugosus (Linnaeus). ORTHOPTERA: 
Chortippus parallelus (Zetterstedt), common, C. brunneus 
(Thunberg), common. The Amsterdam Zoological Museum 
also possesses specimens of C. brunneus from Fowey. 
DIPTERA. Rhagionidae: Chrysopilus aureus (Meigen). 
Asilidae: Apitriptus cingulatus (Fabricius). Syrphidae: Meta- 
syrphus lotifasciatus (Macquart), Syritta pipiens (Linnaeus). 
Tephritidae: Urophora jaceana Hering, Dithryca guttularis 
(Meigen), Tephritis vespertina (Loew). Oestridae: Oestrus 
ovis (Linnaeus) HYMENOPTERA. Sphecidae: Melinus 
arvensis (Linnoeus). Apidae: Colletes daviesanus Smith, 
Bombus lucorum (Linnaeus), B. pascorum vulgus Harris. 

In conclusion I thank Lt. Col. Emmet for the identifi- 
cation of Callisto and the colleagues of the Institute for 
Taxonomic Zoology (Zoological Museum) in Amsterdam 
for naming the ‘other insects’. All specimens are in the 


collections of this museum now. — B. J. LEMPKE, Oude 
Yselstraat 12, 1078 CM Amsterdam. 
EUPITHECIA MILLEFOLIATA ROSSL. : A CORRECTION. — 


Sir John Dacie has been good enough to remind me that he 
took this species at light in Wimbledon, S. W. London, in 
1961 and again in 1967, and recorded his captures in 1971, 
Ent. Rec., 83: 205; he also took a third specimen on 17.vi.77. 
This necessitates a modification of my claim (in recording 
one from Charlton) that “‘this appears to be the first capture 
in the London area” (antea: 257): it should be altered to 
*“, . in the S. E. London area”, or perhaps “. . .in W. Kent”. 
— A. A. ALLEN. 


ORTHOSIA MINIOSA D. & S., First RECORDED OCCURRENCE 
IN EASTBOURNE IN THREE DECADES. — Upon the 15th of April 
1980 I took a fine male specimen of this species at a static 
light trap in the Town. The species was considered ‘fairly 
common’ (Adkin) in Abbot’s Wood in the thirties but its 
demise seemed linked to the felling of the great stands of 
Oaks in this woodland during the war. The last specimens 
were also recorded from this area by the late D. Hillman 
just prior to the beginning of the fifties. — Mark HADLEY 
F.R.E.S. Zoology 2 Dept. Life Sciences, Imperial College, 
Prince Consort Road, London SW7. 


OVER-WINTERING WASP- BEETLE (CLYTUS ARIETIS (L.)). 
— On March 16th last, whilst sitting in front of the gas fire 
of my upstairs flat, I was astonished to see a Wasp-beetle 
(Clytus arietis) striding over the carpet towards me. I can 
only assume it had been overwintering indoors. Is it usual for 
Cerambycids to hibernate as adults? Or had it emerged from 
some part of the woodwork, stimulated by the warmth of the 
room? — ANTHONY WoorTTON, Stone, Bucks. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 19] 


AGONOPTERIX SCOPARIELLA (HEINEMANN) IN KENT. — 
Larvae beaten from Sarothamnus scoparius on the occasion 
of a Kent Field Club visit to the heath area near Canterbury 
(known as ‘Old Park’) on June 23rd 1979, produced three 
specimens of A. scopariella on July 22nd 1979. — N. F. 
HEAL, “Fosters”, Detling Hill, Maidstone. 


LATE ORTHOPTERA RECORDS IN WEST SUSSEX 1979. — 
The last week of November and first half of December, 1979, 
were comparatively warm and sunny along the coastal fringe 
of West Sussex and this mild period resulted in some 
interestingly late survivals amongst the local populations of 
orthoptera. The sand-dune area at Pagham (now surrounded 
by housing) and Arundel Park were, as in previous years, the 
most favoured areas. All the December specimens noted were 
collected and sent to the British Museum (Natural History). 

TETTIGONIIDAE: Paholidoptera_ griseoaptera (De 
Geer), Dark Bush-cricket, 4 0 oh, 3 992, 26th November, 
Houghton Forest, trackside bramble thicket. Platycleis albo- 
punctata f. falcata (Goeze), Grey Bush-cricket. 1 ? fourth 
instar nymph, 29th November, Pagham. (Specimen to British 
Museum). A most unexpected find, considered by Dr. R. 
Ragge (pers. comm.) to be delayed emergence. Conocephalus 
discolor (Thunberg), Long-winged Cone-head, 1 9, 26th 
November, Arundel Park. The three following grasshopper 
species were all present in Arundel Park in fair numbers on 
this date. 

ACRIDIDAE: Chorthippus brunnens (Thunberg), Com- 
mon Field grasshopper, 6 92, 29th November, Pagham. | 9, 
3rd December, Arundel Park. Chorthippus parallelus Zetter- 
stedt), Meadow Grasshopper. 1 92, 3rd December, Arundel 
Park. My only December record for the species so far. 
Gomphocerippus rufus (L.), Rufous Grasshopper. 6 od, 
4 99, 3rd December, Arundel Park; 1 9, 10th December, 
Arundel Park, the latest date I have so far for any British 
Grasshopper. — E. C. M. Hass, 45 Grove Road, Worthing, 
West Sussex. 


WIEDEMANNIA (CHAMAEDIPSIA) LOTA WALKER (DIPTERA: 
EMPIDIDAE) FROM NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. — While sampling 
the bank fauna of the River Ise on the 18th April 1980 I 
observed a number of flies of the sub-family Hemerodrominae 
‘skating’ over the water surface and briefly alighting on sparse 
vegetation growing from a small mudbank an inch or two 
above the level of the river. During an observation time of 
approximately ten minutes I captured five of these flies with 
a pooter before moving on to another sampling site where 
no more were seen. When identifying the material later that 
day, in addition to two females of the common Clinocera 
(Hydrodromia) stagnalis Haliday there were a male and two 
females of a species unknown to me. Using the keys of Collin 
(1961, British Flies VI Empididae) these were found to be 
Wiedemannia (Chamaedipsia) lota Walker, which Coliin 
(op. cit.) records from only four British localities in Gla- 


192 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


morgan, Cornwall and two in Yorkshire, captured between 
late July and October. This record from Northamptonshire 
is therefore considerably earlier in the year than previous 
British captures, following a period of mild weather in April. 
The locality is near Warkton, Kettering (SP 890800) where 
the river is about 4m. wide. — I. F. G. McLean, Nature 
Conservancy Council, 19/20 Belgrave Square, London SWiX 
SPY. 


MEIGENIA DORSALIS Ma. (Dipt.: TACHINIDAE): AN ECO- 
LOGICAL Note. — I took a male of this rather uncommon fly 
(=M. pilosa Baran.) from a shrub in my garden here on 9th 
Sept. 1978, which was only much later found (on the basis 
of the genital forceps) to differ from the larger form (bisignata 
Mg.) of the common M. mutabilis Fall.I suspected it to be 
M. dorsalis, and Mr. E. A. Fonseca has kindly confirmed this 
by comparison with a specimen in his collection checked by 
the late Dr. F. I. van Emden. 

According to van Emden (1954, Handb. Ident. Brit. Ins., 
10 (4a): 61), the present species has been bred from the leaf- 
beetle Phytodecta rufipes Deg. — the only host record given 
for it. This, however, appears unlikely to be the usual, still 
less the sole, host. For one thing, the fly is said (/.c.) to occur 
“especially on chalk’’, while P. rufipes lives on aspens in woods; 
and for another, neither this beetle nor any of its congeners 
is to be found in the vicinity of my garden. It may be that 
M. dorsalis really has as wide a host-range as its very close 
ally M. mutabilis. But if not, and if Chrysomelidae are indeed 
the main family in question, then a most likely host in this 
instance is Crioceris asparagi L., whose larvae had been 
rather plentiful on an asparagus plant quite near where the 
fly was caught. This is made still more probable by the 
inclusion of Criocerinae among the host records (l.c.) for 
M. mutabilis. — A. A. ALLEN, 49 Montcalm Road, Charlton, 
London SE7 8QG. 


THE STRIPED HAWKMOTH: HYLES LINEATA LIVORNICA 
ESPER IN SOUTH DEvoNn. — On IIth June, 1980, a large 
specimen of this moth in mint condition, was found resting 
on the base of the m.v.l. bulb in the trap. Weather was 
overcast with night temperature about 55°F. — H. L. 
O’HEFFERNAN, c/o 15 Green Park Way, Chillington, Kings- 
bridge TQ7 2HY, S. Devon. 

THE STRIPED HAWKMOTH: HYLES LINEATA LIVORNICA 
ESPER IN Kent. — A good specimen of this moth turned up 
in the trap here on ‘the 26th June, 1980. It was a cool, wet 
windy night with the wind in the W. or N.W. — J. E. Owen, 
Eastbridge House, Dymchurch, Kent TN29 OHZ. 

CoRRECTION. —In “Six Further New Butterflies from 
Southern Africa” by C. G. C. Dickson, on p.43 line 5 read 
“mijburghi” for “mijiburghi’’, and in line 8 read ‘‘Mijburgh” 
for “‘Mijurgh’’. The insect’s name was correctly spelt in an 
earlier part of the paper (at p.1), so there can be no question 
about its validity, 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 193 


DELTOTE BANKIANA F.: SILVER BARRED (LEP.: NOc- 
TUIDAE) IN KENT. — A single male of this pretty species was 
taken in the m.v. light trap on the night of 12th/13th June, 
1980 in Kingsdown near Deal. I think it likely that my example 
was an immigrant, since a rather worn male Mythimna 
albipuncta D. & S. was taken the same night. — A. P. FOSTER, 
31 Kings Close, Kingsdown, Deal, Kent CT14 8BA. [This is 
only the fourth record of occurrence of D. bankiana in Kent. 
The first was at Folkestone in 1965, then one at Dungeness in 
1970 and one at Dymchurch in 1977. — J. M. C.-H.] 

HELIOTHIS PELTIGERA D. & S. AND RHYACIA SIMULANS 
HUFNAGEL AT PORTLAND, Dorset. — When Brian Elliott and 
I visited Portland on 21st June, 1980, conditions were such 
that we did not expect much success from m.v.1. and, in the 
event, the only moth of note was a female Heliothis peltigera 
to complement a worn male I had taken at the same spot on 
18th June. The strong wind, however, did not deter moths 
from feeding and many were enjoying the valerian bloom, 
amongst which we were delighted to be able to log over 30 
Rhyacia simulans, mostly in good condition. Although Port- 
land is a well-known locality for this species, we cannot recall 
it having been noted here before in such numbers. — R. G. 
CHATELAIN, 65 East Drive, Orpington, Kent. 

FURTHER NOTES ON THE LARVAL HABITS OF ERIOGASTER 
LANESTRIS L.: SMALL EGGAR (LEP.: LASIOCAMPIDAE). — In 
Ent. Rec., 1967:79:85-86 I wrote of the larval habits of this 
species as they were known to me at that time. Since then 
there have been various notes expressing concern that lanestris 
was on the decline, and that to some extent the changing 
agricultural pattern regarding machine hedge trimming was 
to blame. In the good old days only a certain amount of time 
and labour could be expended on hedge trimming by hand 
and the system of rotation which had to be adopted meant 
that many hedges were only cut and laid every five or six 
years. The advent of mechanical hedge trimming seemed to 
coincide with the reports of the disappearance of Jlanestris, 
and on many farms, hedges are now cut every year leaving 
no long growth. Thus, /anestris would be badly affected, since 
it prefers to oviposit on top of side shoots of hawthorn, black- 
thorn, rose or bramble. 

In June 1976 I met John and Dee Simner who keep me 
informed of the status of Janestris in their district. At one 
time the webs could be easily spotted from a moving car, but 
of the several webs found lately all were in fairly thick hedge 
and not so easy to see. Thus, it is possible that nowadays more 
webs are overlooked because of this habit. — R. W. WarTSON, 
F.R.E.S., Watson Trust for Entomology, Porcorum, Sandy 
Down, Boldre, Lymington, Hants. 

Curious CASE OF A DWARF PHLOGOPHORA METICULOSA 
L. BRED FROM A DAMAGED Pupa. — While my wife was gar- 
dening she found a pupa under a stone on our rockery. Some- 
how the trowel caught the pupa and seemingly punctured it 


194 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


as the “‘soup” inside began to exude. My wife took the pupa 
indoors, and while wiping it dry with a piece of cotton wool 
noted that the shell was definitely punctured. She showed me 
the pupa when I returned home, and as the tail end began to 
wriggle, I kept it in my pupae box on peat. Recently the 
moth thatched, turning out to be Phlogophora meticulosa L. 
(Angle-shades), but the specimen is much smaller than a 
typical example. Could this small size be attributed to the 
puncturing of the shell and loss of some of the contents? I 
have always found that a punctured pupa was a dead pupa. — 
DENNIS Dey, 9 Monmouth Close, Rainham, Gillingham, Kent 
ME8 7BQ. [Have any of our readers had a similar experience? 
— Editor. ] 

THE HUMMINGBIRD HAWKMOTH: MACROGLOSSUM STELLA- 
TARUM L. IN SOUTH DEVON. —On 13th June, 1980, a single 
specimen was observed feeding at valerian at the north end of 
Slapton Sands. Weather warm, sunny, after gale and rain the 
night before. —H. L. O’HEFFERNAN, c/o 15 Green Park Way, 
Chillington, Kingsbridge TQ7 2HY, S. Devon. 

THE HUMMINGBIRD HAWKMOTH: MACROGLOSSUM STELLA- 
TARUM L. IN DERBYSHIRE. — A resident in Shelton Lock, near 
Derby, captured a specimen of this moth which was flying 
over Carnation blooms during the sunny afternoon of 7th 
June, 1980. I kept the moth in a cage for several days in order 
to see if it would lay any eggs but it died after five days with- 
out doing so. I thought that this report from the Midlands 
would be of interest especially as we had a very warm April 
and May, thus encouraging an early arrival of migrant insects. 
— Bruce S. Burns, 20 Kedleston Close, Allestree, Derby DE3 
2RA. 

THE HUMMINGBIRD HAWKMOTH: MACROGLOSSUM STELLA- 
TARUM L. IN SCOTLAND. — On the 6th June, 1980 at about 
3 p.m. I sighted a small moth flying at speed in a northerly 
direction approximately 200 yards from the Low Light on the 
Isle of May, nr. Crail, Fyfe. Fortunately it settled on a rock 
and on closer examination I identified it as a Humming-bird 
Hawkmoth. It was duly entered in the Observatory Migration 
log and I was later informed by the warden (Mr. P. Lack) that 
it was the first record for this species on the Isle since 1899. 
— ALAN F. JOHNSTON, Art Gallery and Museum, Kelvingrove, 
Glasgow. 

SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE BRIMSTONE BUTTERFLY: 
GONEPTERYX RHAMNi L. — Hanging from the underside of a 
leaf is hardly the most advantageous place for a butterfly to 
absorb heat from the sun. This however is a drawback to the 
otherwise highly efficient method Gonepteryx rhamni L. has 
evolved to hide from predators while at rest. I would suggest 
that G. rhamni has overcome this problem by being able to 
vibrate its wings in a manner similar to that used by some of 
the night flying moths, and thus raise its body temperature 
sufficiently to enable it to take flight. 

I have witnessed preflight wing vibrating on two occasions 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 195 


both during cool windy weather with sunny periods, when the 
temperature hardly crept above 13°C. even in full sunshine, 
on each occasion vibrating commenced shortly after the sun 
had emerged from behind a cloud and lasted for 10-15 seconds. 

The first time I witnessed this behaviour (15th April, 
1977) the butterfly had chosen the underside of a Corylus 
avellana (Hazel) leaf about 9in. from the ground and due to 
considerable fluttering caused by the wind I was not too 
certain which vibrations were caused by the wind and which 
by the insect itself. On the second occasion (5th May, 1980) 
the brimstone, a male, settled on the underside of a Verbas- 
cum thapus (Great Mullien) leaf, a much firmer anchorage, 
and I was able to observe the leading edge of both forewings 
vibrate quite rapidly. 

This does seem a logical method of raising body tempera- 
ture when heat absorption is not available; has anyone similar 
observations? —C. J. Tups, 19 Penny’s Lane, Fordingbridge, 
Hants. SP6 1HQ. 

AN EARLY RECORD OF VANESSA ATALANTA (L). IN CUMBRIA. 
—JIn the afternoon of 19th April, 1980 my wife drew my 
attention to a Red Admiral flying in the sunshine here at 
Kendal Wood. The specimen was flying in the drive to my 
house, occasionally settling when it was seen to be in a very 
worn condition. There are only a few April records for this 
species in Cumbria. The late Dr. R. C. Lowther of Grange- 
over-Sands kept detailed phenological records for many years 
and I note from these that V. atalanta occurred in the early 
part of the year on only four occasions between 1920 and 
1949. The earliest of these concerned a specimen at Arnside 
on 25th March, 1949. 

These early records occasion the thought that V. atalanta 
may at times hibernate in this country even so far north as 
Cumbria. Last winter was generally a very mild one which 
may be significant in the present occurrence. — Dr. NEVILLE 
L. BirRKETT, Kendal Wood, New Hutton, Cumbria LA8 0AQ. 

A SECOND BRITISH SPECIMEN OF LAMPRONIA FLAVIMI- 
TRELLA HUEBNER (LEP.: INCURVARIIDAE). — On the 24th May, 
1980, at about 7.30 p.m., I netted an incurvariid of unfamiliar 
appearance in one of the clearings in Hoads Wood near 
Ashford, Kent. On returning home, further examination 
showed it was probably referable to L. flavimitrella, a species 
only once before taken in Britain. I have since submitted the 
specimen to Dr. J. D. Bradley, who has kindly confirmed the 
determination. My example, a female of wing expanse 16 mm, 
has the two transverse bands on forewing uninterrupted. The 
first British flavimitrella, a male, was taken by the late Denzil 
Ffennell in his garden at Martyr Worthy, Hants., on the 18th 
May, 1974, and recorded by him in Ent. Gaz., 28:180-182. —- 
J. M. CHALMERS-HUnrT. 

ABNORMAL ABUNDANCE OF THE COMMA: POLYGONIA C- 
ALBUM L. IN Kent. — At Brookland, Romney Marsh, in a 
lane coming from the direction of Lydd, on the 5th August, 
1979, I saw more than 70 of this butterfly at bramble flowers, 


196 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/VII/VIII/80 


and some 40 there the following day. I also noticed a number 
there later at ivy bloom on the 30th September. — E. 
CARPENTER, 50 Sycamore Close, Lydd, Kent. 

Tue Ni Motu: TRICHOPLUSIA NI HUEBNER, AT PORTLAND 
IN 1980. —I took a male specimen of this migratory species 
at Portland Bill, Dorset on the night of the 24th May, 1980. 
It was a very poor night for insects generally, with only about 
20 moths per m.v. trap at dawn. — W. L. Coster, 15 Elm 
Road, South Woodham Ferrers, Chelmsford, Essex. 

THE CAMBERWELL BEAUTY IN SPAIN. — During a recent 
collecting trip to Spain, about 20 specimens of Nymphalis 
antiopa L. were seen in the Cantabrian Mountains of North 
Spain at the beginning of June. Several were observed around 
bushy willows near the village of Portilla de la Reina between 
Riano and the San Glorio Pass. It was a pleasure to watch 
and photograph this fine butterfly feeding on the willow 
flowers. I ‘‘sleeved” three fairly fresh females on a willow 
branch, but no eggs were laid after three days when I had to 
move on after releasing the butterflies. I made a thorough 
search of many willows but no “‘webs” were discovered, The 
season was a late one, and it is probable that most females 
had already laid their egg clusters. During several visits to 
Spain, I have not seen N. antiopa in such numbers, and am 
wondering whether this could mean another invasion of 
Britain by this species this summer. — H. G. PHELPs, “‘Green 
Oak’’, Potters Hill, Crockerton, Warminster, Wilts., 14.vi.1980. 

THE CONVOLVULUS HAWKMOTH: AGRIUS CONVOLVULI L. 
IN SuSSEX. — On Thursday, 26th June, 1980 my close neigh- 
bour found a Convolvulus Hawk at rest on his front door. 
This female specimen was fairly fresh but with some damage 
probably made when it was boxed. I kept it in captivity 
together with Convolvulus arvensis for six days but it laid no 
eggs. I would be interested to know whether other captures 
of this moth have been recorded this year around this date. 
Normally I do not see this migrant until September/October. 
— RONALD PICKERING, 123 Manor Way, Aldwick Bay, Bognor 
Regis, West Sussex PO21 4HN. 


Current Literature 


West Sussex Wildlife Recording Group — Butterfly Report. 
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any loss or damage. 
CONTENTS 


The Life Cycle of Chrysodeixis chalcites (Esper) (Lep.: Noctuidae: 
Plusiinae), and an Account of the Breeding Techniques Used. 


D. R. STEPHENSON : 157 
Some New Records of Lepidoptera from Southern Scotland in 1979. 
Dirkeeh BAND ce 161 


The Apparent Absence from Britain of T. hera variata (D. & Ss.) and 
Related Changes in the Nomenclature. Rev. D. AGASSIZ and 
B. SKINNER De ag Ae ee) 162 
Hydroptila occulta (Eaton) «@ richoptera: Hydroptilidae), a Caddis- 
fly New to Ireland with Notes on Hydroptila martini Marshall. 
Dr. J. P. O};CONNOR and Dr. M. A. O’CONNOR __.... sane alsiz/ 


SPECIAL NOTICE 


The Editor would be willing to consider the purchase of a limited number 
of certain back issues. 


Contents cont. 


Satyrid Spotting Scheme — A Request. Dr. R. L. H. DENNIS .. 

Dermaptera from the Gunong Mulu National Park, Borneo. A. 
BRINDLE : 

Some Records of Curculionidae (Coleoptera) from Cumbria collected 
I OT Se ue Ws eo Ey eee 

Contribution to the Knowledge of Phasmida Ill. Diapause in the 
Eggs of Extatosoma tiaratum (MacLeay). U. CARLBERG 

Possible Ant-mating Signals in the Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria 
Lene Se ARGE Ne 

A New Species of Homoeosoma Curtis (Lep.: Phycitinae) from 
North India. Dr. H. §. ROSE and Dr. S. S. DHILLON a 

The Use of Portable 40-Watt Ultraviolet Fluorescent Tubes for 
Attracting Insects. Dr. R. 8S. WILKINSON 

Notes and Observations: 
Lasius fuliginosus (Latreille) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in 

Buckinghamshire. A. WOOTTON _... 

Catopsilia florella F.: MWLarval Coloration. D. iG SEVASTO- 


PULO 
Ethmia bipunctella (F.) in ‘the Rochester District. A. G. r 
BUTCHER ae vate 
Teleiopsus diffins Haw. ‘(Lep.: Gelechiidae). Ee ‘E CHIPPER- 
FIELD 


Cataplectica farreni (Wals.) (Le: Epermeniidae) at Muchalls, 
Kincardineshire. Dr. P. D. HULME ... Bae an 
Spatalistis bifasciana (Hbn.). N. F. HEAL : 
On Foodplants of Saturnia pavonia L. K. PORTER ae 
Agrotis exclamationis L. (Heart and Dart) in March. M. 
ELVIDGE , 
Earwig’s Multiple Ege-brood. ‘A. WOOTTON... 
Insects from Cornwall, including apparently the First Cornish 
Lulworth Skipper. B. J. LEMPKE _... aye 
Eupithecia millefoliata Rossl.: a Correction. A. A. ALLEN aa 
Orthosia miniosa D. & S., First Recorded Occurrence in East- 
bourne in Three Decades MisHADIEE Yi: 
Over-wintering Wasp-beetle (Clytus arietis L.). A. WOOTTON 
A gonopterix scopariella (Heinmann) in Kent. N. F. HEAL ... 
Late Orthoptera Records in West Sussex, 1979. E. C. M. HAES 
Wiedemannia (Chamaedipsia) lota Walker (Diptera: Empididae) 
Northamptonshire. I. F. G. McLEAN : 
Meigenia dorsalis Mg. (Dipt.: Tachinidae): an Ecological Note. 
AAG PATEEIN 9 ase: 
The Striped Hawkmoth in South Devon. eo L. 0° ‘HEFFERNAN 
The Striped Hawkmoth in Kent. J. E. OWEN ™ ... Ase 
Deltote bankiana F.: Silver-barred in Kent. A. P. FOSTER ... 
Heliothis peltigera D. & S. and Rhyacia simulans Hufnagel at 
Portland, Dorset. R. G. CHATELAIN 
Further Notes on the Larval Habits of Eriogaster lanestris L.: 
Small Eggar (Lep.: Lasiocampidae). R. W. WATSON ... 
Curious Case of a Dwarf Phlogephora meticulosa L. bred from 
a Damaged Pupa. D. DEY ... 
The Hummingbird Hawkmoth in South Devon. TED fe. O’HEF- 
FERNAN ate 
The Hummingbird Hawkmoth in Derbyshire. B. S. BURNS .. 
Some Observations on the Brimstone Butterfly. C. J. TUBB ... 
An Early Record of Vanessa atalanta L. in Cumbria. Dr. N. L. 
BIRKETT 
A Second British Specimen ‘of Lampronia flavimitrella Hbn. 
(Lep.: Incurvariidae). J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT : 
Abnormal Abundance of the Comma: Polygonia c-album i 
in Kent. E. CARPENTER _... 
The Ni Moth: Trichoplusia ni Hbn. at Portland in 1980. W. 
L. COSTER an Be 
The Camberwell Beauty in Spain, eg G. PHELPS Be 
The Convolvulus Hawkmoth in Sussex. R. PICKERING 
Current Literature 
The ae a and Moths of Kent. Volume 3. J. M. CHALMERS- 
U sa ty 


Printed by Charles Phipps Ltd., 225 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4HL 


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‘OL. 92, No. 9 


September, 1980 ISSN 0013 8916 


EAA. ak > Tk te ee 


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iv THE 
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AND JOURNAL OF VARIATION 


Edited by J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT, F.R.E.S. 
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= i] - 44 


PLATE XVI 


197 


About the reported occurrence of Maniola telmessia 
Zeller on Angistri island, Greece 


By John G. Coutsis* 


In the French edition of the “‘Field Guide to the Butter- 
flies of Britain and Europe” (Guide des Papillons d’Europe, 
1971, 1975, by L. G. Higgins and N. D. Riley; translated and 
adapted by P. C. Rougeot) it is reported that M. telmessia 
has been recorded from the small Greek island of Angistri, 
situated a few miles due south-west from the port of Piraeus. 

This unusual record prompted me to visit this island, and 
on 13th May 1979 a series of 20 male and 9 female Maniola 
specimens were collected there. 

All captured male specimens (Plt. XVI fig. 1) were found 
to be superficially identical with the form of Maniola jurtina 
Linnaeus inhabiting the surrounding mainland areas and 
quite unlike telmessia (Plt. XVI fig. 2), while their genitalia 
(Plt. XVI fig. 3) proved beyond any doubt that all were, in 
fact, jurtina and not telmessia, whose genitalia (Plt. XVI fig. 4) 
exhibit a number of distinctive structural characters. 

In view of this it would seem rather doubtful that telmessia 
should occur at all on Angistri isleand, a place situated well 
outside the geographic area known to be inhabited by it. 


References 

Higgins, L. G. & Riley, N. D., translation and adaptation by Rougeot, 
P. C., 1971, 1975. Guide des Papillons d’Europe. Delachaux et Niestlé, 
Neuchatel-Paris. 

Higgins, L. G., 1975. The Classification of European Butterflies. 
Collins, London. 

Tauber, A. F. & Tauber, W., 1968. Die Gattung Maniola (Lep. Saty- 
ridae) in der Agais. Ent. Nachrichtenbl., 15: 78-86. 

*4 Glykonos Street, Athens 139, Greece. 


ON THE OvIPOSITING HABITS OF THE WHITE ADMIRAL: 
LADOGA CAMILLA L. — Last year whilst searching for the ova 
of this butterfly in a wood in Hampshire, I found an ovum 
of this species that had been deposited on a bramble leaf close 
by some honeysuckle. The normal habit of this insect of 
course is to deposit on honeysuckle, and this year I observed 
a female camilla in a Dorset wood settle on a wisp of honey- 
suckle about a foot above the ground, and which formed 
part of the ground cover between the hazel coppicing. 
Eventually she flew off and examination revealed a single 
ovum. — A. S. HArRMEeR, ‘Covertside’, Sway Road, Lymington, 
Hants SO4 8MN. 


PLATE XVI 


Maniola jurtina L. 6, Angistri Is., Greece, 13.V.79. Fig. 1: Imago 
upperside. Fig. 3a: Interior surface of right valva. Fig. 3b: Hair pencil. 
M. telmessia Z. @, Filerimos, Island of Rhodes, Greece, 15.V.71. Fig. 2: 
Imago upperside. Fig. 4a: Interior surface of right valve. Fig. 4b: Hair 
pencil. Melanargia russiae Esp., ¢, Mt. Timfi, Greece, c. 1800 m, 
23.VII.78. Figs. 5 and 6: Imagos upperside. 


198 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1X/80 


Melanargia russiae Esper from Greece 
By John G. Coutsis* 


While sorting out lepidoptera collected by members of 
a zoological expedition to Mt. Timfi, Ipiros, north-western 
Greece, I had the good fortune to discover a couple of male 
M. russiae (Plt. XVI figs. 5 & 6), captured on 23rd July 1978 
on the high plateau near the summit of Mt. Timfi at an altitude 
of about 1800m. The area where the butterflies were captured 
is above tree line and is of calcareous nature. 

These records are, to my knowledge, the first ones of 
their kind for Greece and the southernmost for the Balkan 
Peninsula. Previous records of russiae from the Balkans refer 
mostly to the mountainous area around lake Ochrid, in Yugo- 
slavian Macedonia and in Albania. The Grecian population 
of russiae perhaps represents an extension of the faunistic 
elements of Albania and southern Yugoslavia, but more 
material is needed before drawing safe conclusions. 

My thanks are due to the members of the expedition to 
Mt. Timfi, who had the kindness to offer me these butterflies, 
which are now deposited in the author’s collection. 


References 


Higgins, L. G. and Riley, N. D., 1973. A Field Guide to the Butterflies 
of Britain and Europe. Collins, London. 

Thurner, J., 1964. Die Lepidopteren fauna Jugoslavisch Mazedoniens. 
I. Rhopalocera, Grypocera und Noctuidae. Prirodonaucen Musej 

Skopje. 


*4 Glykonos Street, Athens 139, Greece. 


EARLY OCCURRENCE OF LEPIDOPTERA ON THE ISLE OF 
CANNA IN 1980. — The spring of 1980 was the finest and 
warmest I can remember. In consequence species were observed 
unusualy early C. pamphilus on May 14th and B. selene on 
May 17th. Selene is increasing in clearings of the plantations 
made here since 1956, and now sometimes appears in my 
garden. Z. purpuralis appeared in the colony on the cliffs of 
Sanday as early as June 13th. On the other hand, so far 
(18th July) I have not yet seen Z. filipendulae at all. The fine 
weather in April and May favoured the larvae of V. urticae, 
which is now frequently seen, as is A. aglaia; I can remember 
years when these butterflies were very scarce indeed here. 
— J. L. CAMPBELL, Isle of Canna, Hebrides. 

THE VESTAL: RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. IN SUSSEX. — I 
took a single specimen of this migrant moth in my m.v. trap 
at this address on 7th August 1980. — P. F. WALLEY, 9, Long 
Acre Close, Eastbourne, E. Sussex. 

Erratum. — In “Precis archesia ugandensis (Lep.: 
Nymphalidae): a New Subspecies” by L. McLeod, on Table 1, 
facing p. 110 of the April/May Record, under the heading 
of Entebbe, Uganda, the forms of P. a. ugandensis should 
read: f. pelasgis common and f. semitypica rare. — Editor. 


199 


The Reappearance of Lysandra bellargus Rott., in 
the Chilterns 


By A. J. SHOWLER, Ph.D., F.R.I-C.* 


On 16th Sept. 1979 I set out to search for Autumn Ladies 
Tresses (Spiranthes spiralis) in a field from which it had once 
been recorded at Turville, Bucks. Nearing the end of what 
proved to be a fruitless search, I was both surprised and 
pleased to see a male Lysandra bellargus Rott., at rest in 
the sun, and this was followed by two further specimens, both 
male. Returning on 28th September five more males and one 
female were observed, while on the following day, after a 
wait until the sun appeared, seven males were noted. 

This particularly interested me since, in preparation for 
a lecture to the London Natural History Society, I had during 
the previous winter made many enquiries about the status of 
this species in England, and had, from the information 
received, concluded that it was extinct in Buckinghamshire. 
I half-expected, even so, the comment ‘Oh yes, it’s always 
been there” when I reported my find to a number of people 
I expected would be interested, but none of them said it. 
On the suggestion of Mr. Brian Baker, of Reading Museum, 
I wrote to Mr. Tony Harman (1) who was once resident in the 
area for his observations. In an interesting reply he confirmed 
that , in his opinion bellargus ‘“‘had long since disappeared” 
from the area in question, even though it used to be found 
commonly along with other chalk butterflies such as Lysandra 
coridon and Cupido minimus, both of which still occur. 
Indeed, he was in the area earlier and noted “‘more coridon 
than I have seen since the *50’s”’. 

It is possible that L. bellargus occurs at Watlington Hill, 
about 7 km. from the site in question, and Mr. Baker (2) 
reports that it has reestablished itself in a number of Thames 
Valley sites since the hot summer of 1976. This may bear 
out the suggestion of Muggleton (3) that bellargus only thrives 
in warm climates and that the ever-shortening and colder 
summers of recent years have caused its decline. It would be 
interesting to know if colonies in other parts of the country 
are increasing in numbers, And perhaps this is linked with 
the observations on coridon in the Turville area. 

It would be even more interesting to know how such 
species recolonise an old, or spread to a new, locality. I do 
not believe the suggestion sometimes made that the species 
was always present, but in low density, and yet Ford (4) 
presents very good evidence that Maniola jurtina and Poly- 
ommatus icarus at least fly over a very restricted area, so that 
the spread of these species (and surely, therefore, many more 
like them) is exceedingly difficult to explain. The dispersal 
of a very large number of fertile females must surely be 
necessary to ensure that just one or two arrive in a suitable 


*12 Wedgwood Drive, Hughenden Valley, High Wycombe, Bucks. 


200 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1X/80 


habitat for colonisation or recolonisation? Presumably this 
happens, yet observations of “stray” butterflies in unexpected 
places are few. For example, Harman (1) mentions one 
Euphydryas aurinia, Archer-Lock (5) records Melanargia 
galathea (in October), my son found Strymonidia w-album 
in the year of the drought (6), when unusual records were 
more frequent; I once recorded Limenitis camilla in London, 
when it was expanding its range everywhere (7) and Lysandra 
coridon flying along a lane some 500m. from its obvious place 
of origin and although there must be very many more sightings 
than these, I do not think they provide a satisfactory expla- 
nation for the spread of a butterfly such as L. bellargus which 
requires a specialised habitat and has only one foodplant, 
Horseshoe Vetch (Hippocrepis comosa). For a species such as 
Pararge aegeria, with a widely distributed foodplant and a 
less specialised habitat, a gradual encroachment on a broad 
front, as must have happend in Kent in the 1950’s would 
certainly be possible, but I remain puzzled by the others. 
What do other readers think? 


Postscript 


In 1980, bellargus reappeared in even greater numbers, 
both in the first and second broods. And we found the Autumn 
Ladies Tresses! 

References 


(1) Harman, T., 1979. Private Communication. 

(2) Baker, B., 1979. Private Communication. 

(3) Muggleton, J., 1973. Some Aspects of the History and Ecology 
of Blue Butterflies in the Cotswolds. Proc. Brit. ent. nat. Hist. Soc. 
6 (3): 77-84. 

(4) Ford, E. B., 1945. Butterflies. Collins. pp. 272, 299. 

(5) Archer-Lock, A., 1979. Bagpipes and Cider. Ent. Rec., 91: 212. 

(6) Showler, A., 1977. Observations in 1976. Ent. Rec., 99: 85. 

(7) Showler, A., 1956. The Macrolepidoptera of Abbey Wood. Ent. 
Rec., 68: 124 et seq. 


FERAL RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. DISCHARGING MECONIUM. 
— On the evening of 2nd July 1980, I ran a small nine inch 
actinic blue light tube in the East Blean area of Kent. 
Amongst a number of insects attracted was a fresh specimen 
of the Vestal (R. sacraria). It was interesting that when put 
into a one inch tube it ejected meconium, suggesting the 
likelihood that the moth had bred in the wood or nearby. 
— E. S. Braprorp, 82 Garston Lane, Garston, Watford, 
Herts WD2 6QR. 


THE SLENDER BURNISHED BRASS: DIACHRYSIA ORICHALCEA 
F. — A male specimen of this rare migrant was taken by 
myself at Lymington, Hants at m.v. light on the night of the 
5th September 1980. — A S. Harmer, ‘Covertside’, Sway 
Road, Lymington, Hants, SO4 8MN. 


THE SILVER-STRIPED HAWKMOTH: HIPPOTION CELERIO L. 
IN YORKSHIRE. — My friend A. S. Ezard took a fine male of 
this scarce migrant in his garden trap at Rudston in East 
Riding, on the 19th September 1980. — P. Q. WINTER, West 
End Farm, Muston, Filey, N. Yorkshire. 


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PLATE XVII 


GENITALIA OF COLEOPHORA 
Fig. 1: C. prunifoliae @. Fig. 2: C. coracipennella @. Beige: GC. 


cerasivorella 8. Fig. 4: C. prunifoliae @. Fig. 5: C. coracipennella 2. 
Fig. 6: C. cerasivorella °. 


201 


Coleophora prunifoliae Doets (Lep.: Coleophoridae) 

a Species New to Britain and a consideration of 

C. cerasivorella Packard and C. coracipennella 
(Huebner) 


By R. HECKFORD’ 


Meyrick (1928) describes only one grey winged species 
of Coleophora with a straight cylindrical case feeding on 
Crataegus, Malus and Prunus spinosa: Coleophora nigricella 
(Stephens). Ford (1949b) followed Meyrick. However at a 
later date it became clear that two species were involved: 
C. cerasivorella Packard and C. coracipennella (Huebner), 
the latter being the true nigricella. 

Ellerton (1970) on reviewing the species of microlepi- 
doptera added to the British list since Ford’s review (1949a) 
included C. cerasivorella and C. coracipennella but could not 
give any reference at to where and when they were first 
separated in the British literature. As far as I am aware 
there has been no British publication attempting to describe 
the differences between the two species. The discovery of a 
third species of this group new to Britain has given me an 
opportunity of attempting to fill this gap at the same time 
as describing the new species. 

On 29th April 1977 I took some Coleophora cases feeding 
on Prunus spinosa on cliffs at Whitsand Bay, on the south 
Cornish coast. Three adults emerged between 24th June and 
4th July that year. They had grey forewings and I assumed 
they were either C. cerasivorella or C. coracipennella, As I 
was unable to prepare genitalia mounts at that time I did not 
pursue the matter further. 

The following year on 28th April I took a few more cases 
on P. spinosa at the same locality. On 14th May I visited a 
locality on the south Devon coast about 15 miles away. There 
I found cases in abundance on two or three bushes of P. 
spinosa which were right on the edge of the cliffs. However, 
other bushes of P. spinosa had none. 

Adults from Whitsand Bay emerged between 15th and 
19th June that year. Adults from the Devon locality emerged 
between 28th June and 6th July and appeared the same as 
those from Whitsand Bay. 

In 1979 I obtained a copy of Patzak’s paper on the 
Coleophoridae and a stereomicroscope. On dissecting these 
specimens it was clear that they were neither C. cerasivorella 
nor C. coracipennella but appeared to be C. prunifoliae Doets 
a species not previously recorded fromBritain. Accordingly, 
I sent two female abdomens, one from each locality, to Dr. 
J. D. Bradley who kindly confirmed my identification. 

I then examined my other specimens which appeared to 
be of this group. I found no other C. prunifoliae. However, 
I found I had three specimens of C. coracipennella. The first 
was a male bred on 30th June 1971 from a case taken at 


*67, Newnham Road, Plympton, Plymouth, Devon. 


202 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IX/80 


Cambridge; unfortunately I did not record the foodplant nor 
keep the case. The second was a female bred on 26th June 
1978 from a case taken at Longbeech, New Forest, on 3rd 
June that year. I believe the foodplant was Malus. The third 
was a male which emerged on 15th July 1979 from a case 
taken on P. spinosa at West Sedge Moor, Somerset, on 19th 
June that year. All my other specimens from five Vice Counties 
proved to be C. cerasivorella and all were bred from Crataegus. 
I did not keep a note of when I took the cases of these except 
that I took some at Plympton, Devon on 5th June 1979 and 
some at Perran-ar-worthal, Cornwall on 9th June 1979. 

The fact that I had three specimens of C. coracipennella 
seemed an unexpected bonus as it appears to be regarded as 
scarce. Chalmers-Hunt (1975) states “Stephens (1828-34) 
records it from Darenth Wood and near Dover” but could 
find no recent records. Emmet (1979) considers that it is 
“now scarce’. The only recent published records I can find 
are those of Whitebread (1975) and (1977), who bred one 
specimen in 1975 from Malus in North Kent and another 
specimen in 1976 from Crataegus from the same locality. 

Tomlinson (1973) records that cases of C. migricella (sic) 
were found on Crataegus at The Backwarden, Danbury 
Common, Essex, on 15th June 1972 but accepted that no 
definite determination could be made until the adults emerged. 
There appears no published record of what did emerge. 

An interesting point arises concerning the food plants 
of these species. Emmet (1979) gives Malus and occasionally 
Crataegus for C. coracipennella (but not Prunus spp.) and 
Crataegus, Prunus spp., Malus or Pyrus for C. cerasivorella. 
I presume that the reference to Prunus spp. is based on 
specimens which have been checked but it seems an odd 
coincidence that I have not bred C. cerasivorella from P. 
spinosa but only from Crataegus, whereas I have bred both 
C. coracipennella and C. prunifoliae from Prunus. Also will 
C. prunifoliae be found to have any other foodplant in this 
country? 


Description 
Imagines 


Meyrick’s description of C. nigricella agrees with my 
specimens of C. coracipennella, except that the hindwings of 
my three specimens appear more grey-brown than dark grey. 

I can find no reliable difference between my specimens 
of C. cerasivorella and C. prunifoliae. Both species have 
lighter grey forewings than C. coracipennella but I would 
hesitate to separate C. coracipennella on the colour of the 
forewings alone. All three specimens have a wingspan of 
11-13 mm. 

Larvae 

My cases of all three species are red-brown, those of 
C. cerasivorella being darker, and between 6-7 mm. long. 
They have the same angle to the leaf, which is about 45°. 


COLEOPHORA PRUNIFOLIAE, SPECIES NEW TO BRITAIN 203 


Emmet (1979) states that the case of C. coracipennella is fixed 
nearly upright but my two cases do not agree with this. I can 
see no reliable difference between the cases of all three species. 
My cases of C. cerasivorella are smoother and only have a 
dorsal and ventral ridge, wheras my cases of the other two 
species are also ridged along their sides but this may simply 
be due to the type of leaf used in their construction as opposed 
to a character which is consistent irrespective of the food 
lant. 

All the cases are trivalved except two cases of C.cerasi- 
vorella which are bivalved. Whitebread (1977) states that when 
his case of C. coracipennella is seen end on the valve forms 
a Y shape, whereas his cases of C. cerasivorella have this 
character inverted. However, all my cases of the three species 
have this character inverted. 

Genitalia 

On the material that I have, the three species can only 
be reliably separated genitalically. 

The males of C. coracipennella and C. prunifoliae are 
similar but C. cerasivorella is quite different from either. 
The females of all three species are clearly distinguishable. 
I have drawn the accompanying illustrations from my own 
specimens, but wish to emphasise that these drawings are 
diagrammatic and not to scale. 

C. prunifoliae 

The male (fig. 1) is similar to C. coracipennella but differs 
from my two specimens of that species in three respects: 
there is a convex curve halfway along the sacculus, the cornuti 
are differently placed and there is a thick patch of spines on 
the transtilla. This latter character is not shown by Patzak 
(1974) but appears constant in my specimens. 

The female (fig. 4) is also similar to C. coracipennella but 
is clearly separated in having a conspicuous band of dark 
brown spines on the ductus bursae just before the bursa 
copulatrix. Also the bursa copulatrix has a signum whereas 
C. coracipennella has no signum. 

C. coracipennella 

The male (fig. 2) is similar to C. prunifoliae but the 
sacculus is only gently curved throughout its length and does 
not have a definite convex curve. The cornuti are differently 
placed and there is no thick patch of spines on the transtilla. 
In my two specimens the genitalia as a whole are noticeably 
smaller than C. prunifoliae. 

The female (fig. 5) lacks the band of dark brown spines 
on the ductus bursae and also lacks a signum, both characters 
being present in C. prunifoliae. 

C. cerasivorella 

The male (fig. 3) and the female (fig. 6) differ completely 
from both the above species as the illustrations show. 

Further work is needed on this group. I suspect C. pruni- 
foliae may well turn out to be widespread and has simply 
been overlooked until now. If its two present localities are 


204 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IX/80 


any guide, it may be a coastal species. C. coracipennella may 
also prove to be less scarce than is believed 


Acknowledgments 


I am greatly indebted to Dr. J. D. Bradley (Commonwealth 
Institute of Entomology) for confirming my tentative identi- 
fication and to Mr. R. W. J. Uffen for his assistance. My 
thanks are also due to the Nature Conservancy Council as I 
took the case of C. coracipennella at West Sedge Moor during 
a Nature Conservancy Council survey of the area. 


References 


Chalmers-Hunt, J. M., 1975. The 1974 Presidential Address. Notes on 
the Coleophoridae. Proc. Brit. ent. nat. Hist. Soc., 7(3): 74-87. 
Ellerton, J., 1970. Microlepidoptera added to the British List since 

L. T. Ford’s Preview. Proc. Brit. ent. nat. Hist. Soc., 3(2): 33-41. 

Emmet, A. M., editor, 1979. A Field Guide to the Smaller British 
Lepidoptera. 271 pp. London. 

Ford, L. T., 1949a. President’s Address [Review of the Microlepidoptera 
added to the British List since 1928] Proc. S. Lond. ent. nat. 
Hist. Soc. 1947-48: 48-58. 

Ford, L. T., 1949b. A Guide to the Smaller British Lepidoptera 230 pp. 
London. 

Meyrick, E., 1928. A Revised Handbook of British Lepidoptera. vi + 
914 pp. London. 

Patzak, H., 1974. Beitrage zur Insektenfauna der DDR: Lepidoptera — 
Coleophoridae. Beitr. Ent. 24: 153-278. 

Tomlinson, R., 1973. Report on Field Meeting to the Backwarden, 
Danbury Common, Essex, 15th June 1972. Proc. Brit. ent nat. 
Hist. Soc., 6 (2): 60. 

Whitebread, S. E., 1975. Coleophora trigeminella (Fuchs) and C. 
coracipennella (Huebner) in N. Kent. Ent. Rec., 87: 300. 

Whitebread, S. E., 1977. A Further Note on Coleophora trigeminella. 
Fuchs and C. coracipennella (Huebner). Ent. Rec., 89: 16-17. 


FOODPLANTS OF PHYLLONORYCTER MESSANIELLA (ZELL.) 
(LEP.: GRACILLARIDAE). — P. messaniella is one of the most 
polyphagous British Lithocolletids being found on Castanea, 
Carpinus, Fagus & Tilia though its favoured foodplant is 
Quercus sp. (Emmet, A Field Guide to the Smaller British 
Lepidoptera, B.E.N.H.S., 1979). In Windsor Great Park and 
Silwood Park in Berkshire, it feeds commonly on Nothofagus 
obliqua, ““Roble Beech’, which like Quercus, Castanea & 
Fagus is a member of the Fagaceae. 

A more surprising food plant is Betula papyrifera, ‘Canoe 
or Paper-bark Birch’, a North American tree planted in- 
frequently in large gardens and collections, Several individuals 
have been bred from September mines collected in Windsor 
Great Park and from Winkworth arboretum, Surrey. P. mes- 
saniella does not seem to attack native birch species and none 
have occurred among over 100 Phyllonorycter sp. bred from 
Betula pendula and B. pubescens in the Windsor area. Apart 
from P. messaniella, B. papyrifera had a number of typical 
birch leaf miners; Stigmella luteela, Lyonetia clerkella, Ectoe- 
demia argentipedella, a Paronix sp. and the Tenthredinid 
Messa nana. —H. C. J. Goprray, Imperial College at Silwood 
Park, Ascot, Berks. 


PLATE XVIII 


Maniola jurtina L. Female underside aberrations. 3 natural size. 

Left column down Ab. postaurolancia: 1. Wilts., 17. 9. 72, C.G.L. 
2, Wilts., 20. 9° 72, ©:G.L. 3. Wilts, 169.72 .@1G lee 4 Wilts cileowor 
EsGallb, Se Wallis,, WS 79, (Gul. 

Right column down Ab. postmultifidus: 1. Wilts., 29.6.73, C.G.L. 
(holotype). 2. Uley, Glos., 11.7.73, C.G.L. 3. Warminster, Wilts., 19.7.72, 
CG. 4. Wilts., 14.7.72, C:G.L. 5. Tilshead, Wilts, 24-8179, (CGiL: 


COLEOPHORA PRUNIFOLIAE, SPECIES NEW TO BRITAIN 205 


A New Form of Maniola jurtina L. related to 
M. jurtina ab. postaurolancia Leeds 
By Major General C. G. LipscomsB* 


The R.C.K. Collection in the Department of Entomology, 
British Museum (Nat. Hist.), contains a long series of M. 
jurtina. It includes the type specimen of ab. postaurolancia, 
captured at Gomshall, Surrey, in August 1948 by Miss 
Underhill, who at the time was S. G. Castle Russell’s house- 
keeper. 

The butterfly was shown at the South London Exhibition 
that year, and in an addendum on page 120 of the Proceedings 
for 1948-49, the variety is described as having “hindwings 
with the ochreous, orange or fulvous in the band mainly or 
wholly split up into long rays or wedges’’. It is figured on 
plate III fig. 4 in these same Proceedings, and is a rare and 
very distinctive variety. 

For reasons by no means clear, another so far un-named 
form of this butterfly has become confused with postauro- 
lancia and is referred to as such in recent publications. In this 
other form which, to save further confusion, I name postmulti- 
fidus ab. nov., the top half of the band on the underside of 
the hindwings remains entire; the lower half is broken up 
into well separated segments. Both these forms occur in both 
sexes but are not so distinct in the males. The plate ac- 
companying this article illustrates the difference between them. 

In the years that I have collected in Wiltshire and else- 
where I have never found both forms in the same colony, 
although I am told both occurred on the Gomshall Down. 
Here I know of only one limited area where postaurolancia 
now occasionally occurrs, whereas the other form has turned 
up in a number of widely separated localities ranging from 
the New Forest to the Cotswolds. 

*The Riding, Knock, Warminster, Wilts. 


MeEATHOP Moss AND CATCRAG Moss, WITHERSLACK NR. 
GRANGE-OVER-SANDS. — I wonder if I might ask readers 
should they wish to visit, to collect or to catch-and-release 
insects on the above, or any other Cumbria Naturalists’ Trust 
reserve, would they please apply for a permit from the under- 
signed. My Council considers that to conserve the insect 
population, in addition to our efforts to conserve the habitat, 
it is necessary to know who, and how many entomologists 
are visiting the reserves and, if necessary, restrict members. 
Also, to use this information to request a report of their 
findings to add to our monitoring of the reserves. The Trust 
is now wardening the reserve and wardens have had to ask 
some collectors without permit, to leave. This must be very 
disappointing to entomologists who have come from south of 
England — and this has happened this year. — Joy KETCHEN, 
Conservation Officer, Lakefield Cottage, Near Sawrey, Amble- 
side, Cumbria LA22 OLB. 


206 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1X/80 


Gibraltar and Morocco, 1979 
By W. J. TENNENT* 


I intended to fly to Gibraltar during the early hours of 
the 23rd of June but, due to high winds on the rock during 
which the aircraft was unable to land, I didn’t leave England 
until lunchtime the following day, arriving at Gibraltar in 
the late afternoon. 

The following day I was driven to the top of a scenic 
walk down a steep slope on the Eastern side of the rock 
known as the Mediterranean steps. Neither butterflies nor 
flowering plants were plentiful, with most of the former well 
past their best. One or two Papilio machaon were sailing 
around the summit and a fair number of Gonepteryx cleo- 
patra europaea careered up and down the slopes. Also near 
the top I found a few very worn specimens of Strymonidia 
spini and Lasiommata megera. Further down the slopes were 
small numbers of male Pseudotergumia fidia in good condition 
but very difficult to approach without disturbing them as they 
rested on the stony path. The ‘steps’ end in a small wooded 
area near the Gibraltar Security Police post where I found a 
few Pararge aegeria of the nominate form and further down, 
almost in te town, one or two Muschampta proto and a fresh 
pair of Celastrina argiolus. 

I did no collecting during the next two days, due in part 
to the presence of the ‘levante’, a mist which obscures the 
sun and the top of the rock, making it very cool and partly 
because I was engaged in hiring a car, obtaining insurance 
and provisions for going to Morocco. On previous collecting 
trips in Europe I have always had an estate car in which I 
can sleep, thereby being able to take a large amount of 
equipment. However, as it was short notice and because of 
the prohibitive cost of hiring a larger vehicle, I was eventually 
supplied with a Fiat 127 hatchback, barely large enough to 
accommodate my 6’2” frame curled up in the back and the 
reason for a series of fitful nights sleep to follow. 

I spent the morning of the 28th of June on the Mediter- 
ranean steps once more but found little worthy of note and 
added no further species to those I had previously seen other 
than Lampides boeticus. The following day I left Gibraltar 
on the Mons Calpi car ferry for Tangier, arriving shortly 
after dark and decided to drive as far as I could that night 
towards my first destination; Ifrane in the Middle Atlas. I was 
obliged to stop due to tiredness about half past three in the 
morning a few miles south of Meknes. When I arrived at 
Ifrane later that morning the weather was cool and misty. I 
found a likely looking collecting spot on a gentle slope below 
the cedar forests above the town and decided to wait there 
in the hope that the weather got better. I had been warned 
not to leave my car unattended due o the risk of pilfering 
and when I asked the owner of a large house if I might park 
the car in his courtyard, he willingly agreed. 


*1, Middlewood Close, Fylingthorpe, Whitby, Yorks. 


GIBRALTAR AND MOROCCO, 1979 207 


The sun came out at mid-day and butterflies soon began 
to appear. Pandoriana pandora was in abundance and very 
fresh, without exception the females bear the usual silver 
markings on the hindwing underside whereas in the males, 
these markings are vestigial or absent. Lysandra punctifera 
was present in small numbers, mostly in very poor condition 
although I managed to take several males and two females in 
perfect condition. Of the females, the ground colour of one 
is chocolate brown with very few blue scales on the upperside 
and the other is as bright blue as the males. Aporia crataegi, 
Gonepteryx cleopatra cleopatra, Pieris rapae, Polyommatus 
icarus, Lycaena phlaeas, Thymelicus sylvestris form syriacus, 
Spialia sertorius ali and Aricia cramera were all plentiful. 
I took a striking female aberration of A. cramera with all 
the white markings on the underside replaced by a coffee 
brown, only slighter paler than the ground colour. 

I noticed some pale brown hairstreaks flying around the 
lower branches of trees near some houses which I found to 
be Nordmannia esculi mauretanica in fair condition. Unfor- 
tunately a dirty white mongrel dog took exception to my 
presence and embarked on a series of unprovoked attacks, 
apparently intent on sampling Englishman’s flesh. I found 
that if I pretended to throw a missile at it and made plenty 
of noise, it would slide to a halt and retire to build up energy 
for a further attack. However, it soon realised that I had 
nothing to throw and came progressively closer before being 
discouraged. I took three male and four female N. esculi 
before the dog won and I moved on. 

It was late afternoon before I found the official camp site 
and booked in. At the end of the site was a deep gulley with 
a stream and a flowery bank on one side. Here many of the 
butterflies seen earlier on the other side of the town were to 
be found in much larger numbers and with the addition of 
Colias croceus, Maniola jurtina, Melanargia galathea lucasi 
and a pair of Fabriciana adippe auresiana. 

The following morning (Ist July) I returned to my haunt 
of the previous day, parked my car in the forecourt and was 
met by the owner of the house who, having witnessed my 
antics with the net the day before, was obviously of the opinion 
that I would be better hospitalised then allowed to roam freely 
in the sun. Having shown him the set specimens on boards 
my sanity became satisfactorily established and I accepted 
his invitation to breakfast with him and his family. His wife 
produced brown bread, a saucer of local honey, crescent 
shaped almond sweetmeats, a disgusting looking mixture of 
bran and sugar (which nevertheless tasted very nice) and the 
inevitable mint tea. I produced packets of English cigarettes 
which were gratefully received and left, followed by two of 
the younger children of the household wielding tennis rackets 
which they used to swat any butterfly which came within 
their eager reach. P. pandora was more numerous than on 
the previous day, as was P. icarus and A. cramera. I saw a 


208 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IX/80 


few Melitaea didyma occidentalis in the sparse grass near the 
road, mostly rather worn and a single Euphydryas aurinia 
beckeri, also well past it’s best. I caught a few Hipparchia, 
two male Hyponephele lupina mauretanica and a single 
Carcharodus lavatherae. 

In the afternoon the sky was overcast and I climbed high 
into the cedar forest where I was rewarded with a single 
Nymphalis polychloros erythomelas, the only specimen of this 
very dark red local race I saw. It was sitting with wings closed 
on a dark rock and I would have missed it but for the fact 
that I stopped for a short rest. It refused to fly, even when I 
put the net over it and nudged it gently and I had to lift it 
carefully with forceps. There were very few butterflies in the 
forest, one or two L. megera were to be seen and Jssoria 
lathonia flew swiftly along the woodland rides. In the clearings 
were small numbers of P. pandora and A. crataegi. When I 
returned to the car I was shown a cardboard box containing 
the ‘bag’ of the ‘tennis racket brigade’ which included to my 
surprise a single, very battered Iphiclides feisthamelii and a 
female H. lupina, neither of which I had seen. An hour in 
the gorge back at the camp site produced Vanessa cardui and 
a female Philotes abencerragus which, judging from it’s fresh 
condition, was a forerunner of a second generation. 

On the 2nd of July I drove to Annoceur in the hope of 
obtaining Coenonympha vaucheri but the day was again 
overcast and little was flying on the barren slopes other than 
a few Chazara briseis, a single female H. lupina, C. lavatherae 
and a few M. jurtina together with M. galathea in the grass 
at the road side. Likely looking places yielded nothing even 
during the brief periods when the sun shone through. On my 
way back to Ifrane I stopped at various altitudes on the 
Tizi-n-Tretten and Djebel Hebri where I took a female 
Hyponephele maroccana nivellei at 1750 metres and three 
males at 1800 metres. A cold wind sprang up and the only 
lepidoptera apparently willing to brave this weather were 
several Humming bird hawk moths; Macroglossum stellatarum. 

I spent the following morning near the cedar forests and 
in the afternoon found a large sheltered field with long grass 
where Mesoacidalia aglaja lyauteyi and T. sylvestris were in 
abundance. Later that evening I decided that owing to the 
inclement weather which showed no signs of getting much 
better and due also to the revolting smells emanating from 
the camp site latrines, I would move on. I left Ifrane about 
eight o’clock that evening, having set the days catch and drove 
until four o’clock the following morning when, because of 
a very heavy mist which made driving almost impossible, I 
stopped between Marrakesh and Oukaimeden in the High 
Atlas. It was still misty when I awoke five hours later although 
it cleared slowly as my journey continued. However, at high 
levels the fog was dense and I stopped late that morning on 
a sharp bend on the road to Oukaimeden, which afforded a 
parking space and where a stream flowed under the road. 


GIBRALTAR AND MOROCCO, 1979 209 


There was considerable vegetation in this area and I collected 
here for the remainder of the day around 1700 metres. The 
sun didn’t show itself at all but I soon found a wealth of 
butterflies including large numbers of Pyronia cecelia. Higher 
up the mountain side Hyponephele maroccana was common 
but most were males, flying with Coenonympha dorus fettigti 
on the stony slopes. I also took a single male Plebicula amanda 
abdelaziz and a female Heodes alciphron in it’s very large 
form herculeanus which was resting on the outer fringe of 
a tall broom brush. I was surprised to see this latter species 
in good condition as it was late in the season but a careful 
search of similar bushes yielded a further seven females, 
four in perfect condition. No males were seen. Although it 
remained overcast it became warmer and back near the road 
P. amanda, P. icarus and Aricia artaxerxes montensis were 
flying with small numbers of Coenonympha pamphilus, 
Thymelicus hamza and T. sylvestris. A pair of Celastrina 
argiolus and two C. briseis completed the collecting that day 
and I drove up through the mist to Oukaimeden. 

The next morning, 5th July, dawned overcast but by nine 
o’clock the sun was up. This was to be the hottest day of 
my stay in Morocco and I was lucky to be able to collect in 
such beautiful surroundings. Butterflies were numerous on 
the flowery slopes, reminiscent of the central European Alps 
and a climb to the highest convenient point at 2650 metres 
provided breathtaking views of the distant red mountains 
and gorges towards the Toubkal Massif. A large brown butter- 
fly which was very difficult to approach proved to be Berberia 
abdelkader and later in the morning, when the sun became 
really hot, it flew commonly on the steep grass slopes. P 
icarus, P. amanda, C. croceus, P. daplidice, M. galathea and M. 
didyma were common. An extremely worn Pyrgus alveus 
numidas was added to the list as were Pyrgus amoricanus 
maroccanus and Thymelicus lineola semicolon and I took a 
series of Cyaniris semiargus maroccana, being unaware at 
that time that a female form with an upperside blue basal 
flush existed. Further down the mountain I found a stream 
where the males of several Lycaenid species were gathered 
in enormous numbers. They included P. amanda, P. icarus, 
C. semiargus and a few Plebicula atlantica, a singularly 
attractive member of the genus with pale lilac submarginal 
lunules on the male upperside hindwings. The broad orange 
border of the female upperside is very striking. Here also was 
L. puncifera, though generally in even worse condition than 
at Ifrane and a single Melitaea aetherie algrica, somewhat 
worn, was taken. 

It took several hours that evening to set the day’s catch 
and about ten o’clock I decided to move on to Amizmiz, a 
place I particularly wanted to visit. Once again I arrived in 
the middle of the night, having braved the narrow mountain 
roads which were in reality little more than rocky tracks 
totally unsuitable for transport other than mule or landrover 


210 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/TX/80 


with the added hazard of literally hundreds of large toads. 
The following morning was very dull and the only addition 
of any interest was Taracus theophrastus found in small 
numbers resting in low thorn bushes, easily detected due to 
their distinctive black and white undersides. I then drove to 
Marrakesh and on towards Casablanca. I stopped a few miles 
North of Marrakesh to examine a fairly large patch of culti- 
vated purple coloured vetch-like plants some distance from the 
road. The heat at this relatively low level was intense and 
although nothing was flying on the bare ground, this single 
patch of flowers yielded numbers of P.rapae, P. daplidice, 
T. theophrastus, L. boeticus, Syntarucus pirithous, Zizeeria 
knysna and Azanus jesous. I slept that night, 6th July, near 
Rabat and as the next day was very cold, I saw no butterflies. 
However, on the 8th of July I stopped between Asilah and 
Tangier and took Coenonympha arcanioides and several very 
fresh J. feisthamelii before catching the ferry to Gibraltar 
later that evening. I’m sure the customs official suspected me 
of smuggling drugs as he insisted on closely examining the 
cork ends of my setting boards, presumably looking for hidden 
compartments, before I was allowed on the ferry. The ferry 
arrived in Gibraltar about half past eight that evening and 
it was real pleasure to sleep in a roomy bed again. 

I spent the 9th of July sightseeing and the following day 
I went on a day trip (without my net) to Madeek, east from 
Tangier. When I returned to the Meditteranean steps on the 
11th and 12th of July I found that P. fidia was now numerous 
with the sexes in equal numbers and that L. boeticus, S. 
pirithous, P. aegeria and M. proto were all to be found in 
small numbers, but worn. I returned to England on the 13th 
July, well pleased with my collecting. My only regrets are 
firstly, that I saw no sign of Anthocarie belia euphenoides for 
which Gibraltar is the type location and secondly, that post- 
cards sent to the UK from Tangier have. due to their non 
arrival, cast serious doubts within my immediate family as 
to my integrity! ! 

Acknowledgments 

My thanks to Mr. Syd Armstrong and his family for 
their hospitality in Gibraltar and to Dr. L. G. Higgins of 
Woking, Surrey, who kindly confirmed my identification of 
saanennninaeys and C. semiargus maroccana from colour 
slides. 


THE SILVER-BARRED: DELTOTE BANKIANA F. IN ESSEX. 
— A single specimen of this uncommon moth came to light 
on the edge of the marsh near my home on 14th June 1980. 
Although it may have been a migrant, this is a very under- 
collected area and one wonders whether it might be breeding 
here. According to Firmin et al., Guide to the Butterflies and 
Larger Moths of Essex (1975), the species has been recorded 
only twice before from Essex. — J. B. FisHer, Beaumont 
House, Beaumont-cum-Moze, Thorpe-le-Soken, Essex. 


214 


Cercyon granarius Erichson (Col., Hydrophilidae) 
confirmed as British 


By J. A. Parry* 


This is in effect a sequel to the excellent paper on the less 
well-known British species of the genus contributed by Mr. 
A. A. Allen (1969). 

In July I submitted to J. Huijbregts of the Natural History 
Museum, Leiden, Holland, a number of specimens of a Cercyon 
of the fristis group, with the suggestion, that they were 
granarius Erichson, a species doubtfully known as British. 
He has kindly confirmed that they are indeed that species, and 
the place of C. granarius on the British list, until now insecure, 
is thus firmly established. 

Heretofore little appears to have been known about 
granarius. Possibly its presence here would have been proved 
earlier were it not for the absence of a key which effectively 
identifies the species and separates it from its nearest congener 
convexiusculus Stephens. The species was first stated to occur 
in Britain by G. R. Crotch (Rye, 1869).1 Fowler accords it 
a place in his Coleoptera of the British Islands (1887), where 
he calls it granarius Thomson in the text and granarius 
Erichson in his key. Here Fowler distinguishes granarius from 
‘lugubris’ (convexiusculus and/or sternalis Sharp) by the 
greater breadth of the second joint of the maxillary palps, 
which whilst reasonably constant is comparative at best and 
in practice depends on the angle at which the palps are set. 
His description in the text is very accurate, and emphasizes 
the broad mesosternal lamina, which is the chief diagnostic 
feature of the species (as first pointed out by C. G. Thomson 
in 1867). 

Sharp (1918), in his paper introducing C. sternalis and 
C. pumilo (which latter has not survived as a species), gives 
a quite reasonable description of granarius, which accords 
well with that in Continental literature. It is the more sur- 
prising therefore? that his single specimen to which he refers 
on page 275 (given to him by Crotch in 1869) should prove 
to be convexiusculus (Allen 19691, folowing Balfour-Browne 
in litt.). 

Joy, in his Handbook of British Beetles (1932), does not 
include granarius, evidently considering that its presence had 


* 38 Heather Drive, St. Michaels, Tenterden, Kent. 


* According to Rye (1869) it was published in Newman’s Entomologist, 
no. 53 (full reference not to hand). I take this opportunity to correct 
any error in my 1969 paper, kindly pointed out by Mr. Parry: 1879, 
given (p. 213) as the year in which granarius was introduced to our 
list, should of course be 1869. This was probably an overlooked 
misprint. — A.A.A. 

*I can only agree with Mr. Parry here. It is not hard to see how 
Crotch and the early recorders of granarius in Britain may, possibly, 
have mistaken sternalis (long before it was separated) for ‘lugubris’, 
and the latter for granarius; but this cannot apply to Sharp, who dealt 
with all three species in his 1918 paper. — A.A.A. 


212 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IX/80 


not been properly substantiated. In view of the opinions 
expressed about Sharp’s specimen Joy was probably right. 
An amendment to his key to include granarius is given later, 
since the Handbook is probably the work most used by 
moderately expert workers even today. 

In 1968 Dr. Vogt of Darmstadt, W. Germany, produced a 
paper on the genus in Entomologische Blatter, and later also 
a key which was utilised in the appropriate volume of Die 
Kafer Mitteleuropas published in 1971. Unfortunately this key 
uses in two places a simple size limit, unsupported by other 
characters, to separate major groups, these size limits being 
contradicted in the descriptions in the text. It is therefore 
very liable to mislead unless the species are already fairly 
well-known to the user, and the object of the key is thus 
defeated. It failed to identify my granarius on another count 
(see later) but the description of granarius, supporting as it 
did the descriptions from other sources, encouraged my 
growing belief that a number of specimens in my possession 
were in fact that species. 

I first took granarius in 1952, when I found it in some 
quantity in flood refuse at Westbere near Canterbury (O.S. 
reference TR 195607). I recognised then that the specimens 
were distinct from convexiusculus Stephens and I therefore 
kept about twenty individuals, but I was unable to identify 
it from such keys as were available and I contented myself 
with placing it in the ¢ristis group over a query label as a 
fourth species. Last year I belatedly decided to do something 
about it, and in looking around for fresh material I almost 
immediately found further examples in preserved flood-rubbish 
extracts from various places in the Rother Valley (Kent) 
collected in November 1974, and again in fresh flood debris 
from Smallhythe, Tenterden, in May 1978. 

After pondering Vogt’s description I sent some specimens 
to Mr. Allen, suggesting that they might be granarius despite 
the disharmony with Vogt’s key. He replied however, quite 
properly, that in Vogt’s 1968 paper (which he was kind enough 
to lend me) the underside characters illustrated and described 
were such as to preclude granarius. Nevertheless he was not 
happy to declare them convexiusculus, the only reasonable 
alternative, of which I had sent a series for comparison, 
because of the obvious differences in the mesosterna and 
aedeagi. Mr. Allen was also unwilling to commit himself 
because the aedeagi in the first few specimens I dissected 
showed some variation amongst themselves, and some did 
not conform to Vogt’s pattern for granarius, or (for that 
matter) for convexiusculus either. Most of the males I have 
dissected since do in fact conform to Vogt’s granarius figure. 

These Cercyons were certainly not convexiusculus. They 
are distinguished from that species by all the characters listed 
in the table appended to this article. Either they were a 
new species which in view of the quite different sternal 
structure resembled granarius in its upperside appearance 


CERCYON GRANARIUS ERICHSON CONFIRMED BRITISH 213 


and in the dissection to a remarkable degree, or they were 
in fact granarius itself, that species having been inadvertently 
misplaced in Vogt’s key. I favoured the latter alternative, 
which required that Vogt had failed to appreciate or had 
for some other reason disregarded the group character 
(strongly raised meso-/metasternum with a window between) 
by which granarius should have been placed in the fristis 
group of marsh-inhabiting species instead of with the some- 
what mixed bag which comprises the remaining bulk of 
Cercyons. I thought it significant that granarius should be 
described as reticulate (albeit feebly so) and extremely convex 
and furthermore should be found in wet places — all charac- 
teristics of the tristis group — if in fact the underside charac- 
ters were so different; and I found support for the postulate 
in Sharp’s paper where granarius Erichson is placed by Sharp 
within that group. His description probably comes from a 
Continental source; it is unlikely to have been from his 
specimen since according to Allen (1969) the latter is appar- 
ently convexiusculus (teste J. Balfour-Browne). 

At the suggestion of Mr. Brendell of the British Museum 
I sent some specimens to the Museum, commenting that we 
had a species listed in the Check List which we could not 
find, and a species found which we could not identify, and 
pointing out the convenience that would result if these were 
granarius. Mr. Peter Hammond replied saying that he agreed 
that they were granarius and that they corresponded with 
specimens from Alsace to which Belfour-Browne had appended 
that label. He remarked that the underside profile of the 
species shown by Vogt in his paper was incomplete, and 
indeed it is. Since granarius Erichson is apparently uncommon 
on the Continent it is possible that Vogt had not seen speci- 
mens, or perhaps had not cared to interfere too much with 
those he had. 

Although quite content with Mr. Hammond’s determin- 
ation I thought it proper to refer the specimens to an 
authority in a place where granarius is known to be native, 
and Huijbregts’ confirmation has settled the matter for us 
beyond doubt. 

Vogt’s key in Die KGfer Mitteleuropas should now be 
amended as follows: Couplet (4) properly directs granarius 
to (2)) instead of to (5), and hence couplet (16) becomes 
redundant. From (22) the key cannot be rescued without 
major surgery, but it may be completed in the same fashion 
as the amended key for Joy’s Handbook given next. As indi- 
cated above, Vogt’s key should be used with caution because 
of its reliance on size limits. 

The Key for identification of Cercyon species in Joy’s 
Practical Handbook may be expanded to include granarius 
as follows. (I have included also alni Vogt, for the sake only 
of the completion of Vogt’s key above. C. alni was described 
by Vogt in his 1968 paper referred to above, on the strength 
of a single specimen taken near his home town of Darmstadt, 


214 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IX/80 


West Germany; it would appear nevertheless to be a good 

species well differentiated by reason of its characteristic 

puncturation and underside features. However, we are unlikely 
to be concerned with it in this country.). The key is taken 

up at 17 (22). 

17 (22) Elytrae with interstices finely or coarsely shagreened 
with at most a few small punctures (somewhat more 
dense towards base in granarius). Mesosternum and 
metasternum raised centrally, the raised ‘lamina’ of 
the former with its surface prolonged rearwards to 
touch or almost touch the latter, leaving a distinct 
and practically closed cavity between them, visible 
in side view. 

18 (19) Striae very fine, disappearing in final third except 
for traces of 1 and 2. 

(Mesosternal lamina broad, apex of elytra gradually 
suffused with red, upper surface dull) 
minutus Muls. (tristis Ill.)°. 

19 (18) Striae at least as strong at apex as at base. 

20 (20a) Punctures on interstices in a single row, except 
irregularly biserial close to the base. (Mesosternal 
lamina narrow, elytra coarsely shagreened, yellow 
apical field fairly clearly demarcated ... alni Vogt. 

20a (20) Punctures on interstices, if present, not uniserial. 

20b(20c) Without or almost without punctures on interstices. 
Palps clear yellow. Striae deepened towards apex, 
intervals at apex clearly convex. (Shagreening strong 
and close, surface more dull than in any other species 
of the group, yellow apical field clearly demarcated, 
mesosternal lamina fairly broad; elytra clearly more 
acuminate at apex.) Rae sternalis Sharp. 

20c(20b) Interstices distinctly punctured, and not at all convex 
at apex. Palps dark. 

20d (21) Shagreening feeble; uniformly shining, hence the 
puncturation both of the striae and of the intervals 
more distinct. Punctures of striae especially towards 
the sides very large and clear (view from side). 
Mesosternal lamina broad... ... granarius Er. 

21 (20d) Shagreening closer and stronger, surface slightly dull. 
Punctures of striae small. Mesosternal lamina narrow 
(about 3 times as long as broad) .... convexiusculus 
Steph. 

22 (17) Elytrae with interstices not shagreened Se OE 

The distinction between granarius Er. and convexiusculus 

Steph. is clear enough, but these species have evidently been 

confused in the past, and it would be naive to assume that 

there will be no difficulty in the future. The characters separ- 


ating the two species are therefore given in the form of a 
table. 


*It has since been established that Fabricius’s minutus was a Crypto- 
pleurum, and so Illiger’s name is the valid one. — A.A.A. 


CERCYON GRANARIUS ERICHSON CONFIRMED BRITISH 215 
C. granarius Er. C. convexiusculus Steph. 
Mesosternum Broad, cavity large. Narrow, cavity small 


Microsculpture Reticulate but shining, Reticulate and somewhat 
especialy towards apex. dull. 


Striae Striae, particularly 5-8, | Striae of very much smaller 
of very much larger punctures, about twice the 
punctures, dwarfing the diameter of the interstitial 
interstitial punctures punctures. 

(view from side). Striae impressed to apex. 


Striae not impressed at 
apex, appearing as rows 
of discrete punctures. 
Aedeagus Parameres much shorter Parameres longer than 
than central lobe. central lobe. 

May I tender my grateful thanks to Mr. A. A. Allen, 
Mr. Martin Brendell, Mr. Peter Hammond, Dr. Garth Foster 
and Mr. E. Philp for their advice and prompt provision of 
documents; and to M. J. Huijbregts for his final determination. 


References 

Allen, A. A., 1969. Cercyon laminatus Sharp . . . new to Britain; with 
corrections to our list of species, and further notes. Ent. Rec., 81: 
211-216. 

Fowler, W. W., 1887. The Coleoptera of the British Islands, 1: 259-60. 
London. 

Joy, N. H., 1932. A practical handbook of British Beetles, 1: 289-292. 
London. 

Rye, E. C., 1869. [Species of Coleoptera recorded for the first time as 
British.] Ent. Ann., 1869: 38. 

Sharp, D. 11918. On some species hitherto assigned to the genus 
Cercyon. . . . Ent. mon. Mag., 54: 274-7. 

Thomson, C. G., 1867. Skandinaviens Coleoptera, 1X:126, Lund, Sweden. 

Vogt, H. 1969. Cercyon-Studien . . . Ent. Blatt., 64(3): 172-191. 


[The secure reinstatement of the rare C. granarius in our 
list is very interesting and satisfactory, and Mr. Parry is to be 
congratulated both on his discovery and on the painstaking 
manner in which he has established it; the more so, in that the 
ordinary run of collectors do not trouble themselves overmuch 
with this group. I would stress that the treatment of granarius 
in my 1969 paper simply followed the opinions of two workers 
better qualified than myself to judge—opinions to which their 
studies of the genus lent weight, and from which, having seen 
neither Sharp’s putative specimen nor any authentic material 
of the species, I had no reason to dissent. Now, with hindsight, 
what I said concerning the systematic position of granarius 
must of course be ignored; it turns out that Sharp was, after 
all, right in placing it in the tristis-group of species (Cerycon 
Rey), as Mr. Parry has convincingly shewn. From its occur- 
rence in a restricted area of East Kent in the latter half only 
of this century, contrasting with a previous total lack of 
authenticated records, the species may well be a relative new- 
comer to our fauna. It is the second to be restored to the list 
since I wrote (1969), the first being bifenestratus Kit. (of 
which, likewise, the original British record is in doubt). — 
A. A. A.] 


216 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/IX/80 


A Few Interesting Sawfly Records from Southern 
Scotland (Hym: Symphyta) 
By A. D. LISTON* 

The following notes concerning sawflies collected in the 
south of Scotland mostly involve new distributional data. 
These records should be compared with the distributions given 
in Benson (1952-58). It should be noted that many species of 
sawfly were apparently a few weeks late in appearing in 
Scotland throughout 1979, probably because of the rather cold 
spring. However, some of the specimens noted here occurred 
extremely late in comparison with the dates given for them 
by Benson (/.c.) and their delayed time of appearance can not 
be explained in this way. 

TENTHREDINIDAE 
Dolerinae 
Dolerus liogaster var. grayi var. n. 

On the 9th of June, 1979, while collecting a series of 
Dolerus liogaster Thomson on Corstorphine Hill in Edinburgh 
I captured a remarkable female specimen with all its femora, 
except at the extreme bases, and its tibiae, except for an 
obscure infuscate band subapically on the hind pair, coloured 
a bright lemon yellow. 

Two colour forms of the female of this species are com- 
mon in Britain: one with the femora and tibiae of all legs 
more or less marked with red, and the other with them 
completely black (=brevitarsis: Benson, misident. The true 
brevitarsis Hartig is a synonym of picipes (Klug) according 
to a paper by Ermolenko). Benson (1952) states that the red- 
legged form is rare in Britain, but in my experience of it in 
Scotland I would say that it is nearly as common as the 
black-legged form. Males are nearly all of the black-legged 
variety in Britain. Only once have I found a specimen with 
red femora and tibiae. 

Hellén (1955: 104) records that Lindqvist found a male 
specimen of D. gonager (F.) in Finland which had the normal 
red colour of its tibiae replaced by yellow. D. gonager is 
closely related to liogaster so it seems certain that the Finnish 
example (var. flavitibia Hellén) is of the same type as mine. 

It is possible that these yellow marked forms appear more 
frequently, though still very rarely, in northern regions. 
Dolerus willoughbyi Benson, 1956, from Lapland, is unusual 
amongst the “Red Section” of Dolerus in having yellow 
markings on legs and abdomen. 

I name the yellow-legged form of liogaster as var. grayi 
var. n., in gratitude to Mr. T. E. Gray, who as a photographer 


and naturalist has given me much assistance and advice. 
Blennocampinae 


Metallus gei (Brischke) 
Leaf mines of this sawfly were very common in plants of 
Geum rivale L. growing beside a stream near Leadhills, 


* 99, Clermiston Road, Edinburgh, EH12 6UU. 


INTERESTING SAWFLY RECORDS FROM S. SCOTLAND 217 


Lanarkshire. On 26th August, 1979, one adult female was 
obtained by sweeping, and five others were bred from mines 
which were collected. Benson (1952: 107) says of M. gei 
“Larva common in gardens in S. England and as far north 
as Roxburghshire . . .”. While Leadhills is no further north 
than Roxburghshire, this locality is quite wild, and at a height 
of about 1000 ft. in a fairly exposed situation, it possesses a 
boreal fauna which includes sawfly species such as Pontania 
arcticornis Konow and P. pustulator Forsius. Benson does 
not give the World distribution of gei, but it occurs over most 
of Europe, and also the Caucasus. It reaches to Finland in the 
northern part of its range: mines are common there (Viramo, 
1969) but the adults are just as rare as they are in Britain 
(Hellén, 1948). 

Tenthredininae 

Tenthredo mesomelas L. 

Lorenz & Kraus (1957) record the larva of this species 
from Polygonum persicaria L., Arctium lappa L., Heracleum, 
Veronica, Ranunculus (p. 75), Rubus (p. 319) (1 have found 
larvae of mesomelas feeding on R. idaeus L. in Britain), 
Salix caprea L. (p. 321), Solidago, Stachys (p. 323 and Tus- 
silago (p. 324). Benson (1958: v) adds Senecio fuchsii Gmelin 
as a foodplant, and remarks (1952: 125) that it is probably 
polyphagous. Larvae of this species were taken from leaves 
of Petasites hybridus (L.) Gaertn. Mey & Scherb. beside the 
River Tweed, near St. Boswells, Roxburghshire on 23rd June, 
1979. The larvae were subsequently reared on Ranunculus 
acris L. and adults secured. Perhaps it would be as well to 
stress that the plant was carefully identified so as to verify 
that it was Petasites and not Tussilago, which has leaves of a 
similar shape, but much smaller. 

Nematinae 
Hoplocampa chrysorrhoea (Klug) 

A female was taken from sloe (Prunus spinosa L.) growing 
wild near Lauder, Selkirkshire, on 23rd September, 1979. 
Benson (1958: 152) records this species as local north to 
Dumfries. The date of capture is extremely late for this species 
which normally flies from late April to the end of May. The 
nature of the life cycle of Hoplocampa spp. allows only one 
generation a year, for the eggs must be laid in the foodplant’s 
ovaries. The capture of a specimen of this insect in September 
should probably be put down to a freak emergence of one 
of the sawflies belonging to this year’s generation, rather than 
a survivor from the spring emergence. 

Pristiphora pseudocoactula (Lindqvist) 

One female was beaten from birch scrub near Gifford, 
East Lothian, on 22nd July, 1979. This species has been 
recorded by Benson (1958: 169) from Devon, Surrey, and 
Hertfordshire in March and April. In Southern England it 
may therefore have a single brood in the spring. I think that 
the specimen from Gifford was part of a second brood which 
may take place in the northern part of the range of pseudo- 


218 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IX/80 


coactula, Records from Finland are mainly from July and 
late June, and the single specimen from Canada noted in 
Benson (1962) was taken in July. Larvae of Pristiphora 
staudingeri (Ruthe) collected from Salix retusa L. in the 
Swiss Alps in early July of 1979 emerged at the end of the 
month. Presumably these had resulted from eggs laid by 
sawflies which had belonged to the season’s first flight. Some 
of the boreal Pristiphora species may well have an even 
greater number of generations: Zirngiebl (1953) records a 
specimen of Lygaeonematus coactulus Ruthe (probably P. 
breadalbanensis (Cameron)) found in the Bavarian Alps in 
late August. 
Pachynematus albipennis (Hartig) 

Two females were taken at Castle Campbell, near Dollar, 
Clackmannan, on 27th July, 1979. Benson (1958: 234) 
recorded this species as occurring north to Kircudbrightshire. 


References 

Benson, R. B., 1952-58. Hymenoptera Symphyta. Handbk. Ident. Br. 
Insects, 6 (2b-c): 201+ vi pp. 

Benson, R. B., 1956. Studies in Dolerini. Proc. R. ent. Soc. Lond., (B) 
25: 55-63. 

Benson, R. B., 1962. Holarctic Sawflies (Hymenoptera: Symphyta). 
Bull. Br. Mus. nat. Hist. (Ent.), 12(8): 379-409. 

Hellén, W., 1948. Mitteilungen uber einige Tenthredinoiden aus 
Ostfennoskandien. Notul ent., 28: 40-46. 

Hellen, W., 1955. Studien tiber palaarktische Dolerinen. Notul. ent., 

55: 97-107. 

Lorenz, H. & Kraus, M., 1957. Die Larvalsystematik der Blattwespen. 
Abh. Larvalsyst. Insekt., 1: 340 + viii pp. 

Viramo, J., 1969. Zur Kenntnis der Minierfauna Finnlands. Uber die 
Verbreitung der minierenden Blattwespen (Hym. Tenthredinoidea). 
Ann. ent. Fenn., 35: 3-44. 

Zirngiebl, L., 1953. Nordische Nematiden in den bayerischen Alpen 

(Hym. Tenthr.). NachrBl. bayer. Ent., 2: 30-31, 36-37. 


PALPITA UNIONALIS HBN. (LEP.: PYRALIDAE) IN S. E. 
ENGLAND. — A worn male of this immigrant species was taken 
on 4th September 1980. The moth was travelling second class 
on the 9.40 p.m. Victoria to Ramsgate train, so it is not 
possible to specify an exact locality. I would like to take this 
opportunity to express my apologies to the passengers travel- 
ling with the moth for the disturbance caused during the 
capture of this recalcitrant insect. — Paut SOKOLOFF, 
Orpington, Kent. 

THE LARGE TORTOISESHELL: NYMPHALIS POLYCHLOROS L. 
IN SURREY IN 1980.— We have an abundance of Small Tor- 
toiseshells here near Guildford, and the Red Admiral and 
Peacock are also frequent visitors to the garden. However, 
on the 13th September, a Large Tortoiseshell butterfly was 
seen by me. It was sitting on the kitchen window sill, where 
it obligingly remained still for some time with its wings spread 
out, thus enabling me to make a positive identification detail 
by detail from the illustration in the Observers’s Book of 
Butterflies. — Miss JANET WEIR, c/o The Editor, The Ento- 
mologist’s Record and Journal of Variation. 


219 
A New Trap for Carrion Flies 


By Y. Z. ERZINCLIOGLU* 

In studies of the faunal succession of Diptera and other 
insects on animal corpses it has usually been the method to 
approach the corpse stealthily, and then sweep the flies with 
a net. This method is not very satisfactory, for two reasons. 
Firstly, it is impossible to collect all the flies present as many 
species are very wary and will easily avoid capture. Secondly, 
the net will only sample those flies present on the corpse at 
the time it is approached; many individuals will have visited 
the corpse and left it earlier in the day. For these reasons, 
I have devised a trap which will collect the great majority of 
flies visiting a corpse. This trap is intended primarily for use 
with larger corpses as there are already in existence traps for 
use with smaller corpses and carrion bait (Dear, 1978). 


The trap is essentially a wooden frame 75cm long x 45cm 
wide x 35cm high. On both broad sides there are 2cm wide 
slits extending for almost the whole length of the sides. The 
slits are 5cm above the ground. The top of the trap is covered 
with fine muslin which is nailed down along most of its length 
except for one end where it is fastened by bands to a row of 
hooks (see figure). The trap is placed over the corpse and the 
flies enter it through the slits and become trapped inside. In 
order to collect the flies, the flap of muslin on one side is 
unhooked and turned back. The smaller flies can then be 
pootered with a blow-pooter. (The use of the blow-pooter is 
essential for hygienic reasons). The larger flies can be caught 
with jars and assorted tubes. An important feature of this 
trap is that no knock-down agent is necessary. In the smaller 
traps ammonia vapour is used as it is said not to taint the 
bait. However, the use of knock-down agents is best avoided, 
as it is always desirable to keep conditions as natural as 
possible, and also, in my experience, some species are not so 
easily knocked down by ammonia and a large dose is required 
to immobilise them. 


* 257 Woodfield Road, Harrogate, North Yorkshire. 


220 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/TX/80 


The collecting of flies from this trap can be a rather 
tedious business, but well worth the trouble, as only in this 
way can a more or less complete record be kept of the flies 
visiting a corpse. In view of the relevance of faunal succession 
studies on corpses to forensic and medico-legal work, the 
completeness of the data is of great value. 

Acknowledgment 

I would like to thank Mr James P. Dear of the British 
Museum (Natural History) for first suggesting to me that I 
might try to devise a trap for this purpose. 

Reference 


Dear, J. P., 1978. Carrion. In: Stubbs, A. & Chandler, P. Eds. A 
Dipterist’s Handbook. The Amateur Entomologist’s Society. 


THE LARVAL FEEDING OF COLEOPHORA SICCIFOLIA STAIN- 
TON. — This species is widespread at low density in Essex 
and since it has been relatively common in 1980, I have 
recently been able to observe its feeding, both on hawthorn 
and apple, at a number of localities. In all instances there 
has been a feature of the mine, mentioned neither by Uffen 
in The Field Guide nor by Hering in Bestimmungstabellen der 
Blattminen von Europa, which enables determination to be 
made with certainty even if the larva has gone. Stainton 
knew of this feature. He states that the larva makes “large 
brown botches, caused by the parenchyma being eaten away, 
and not infrequently the upper epidermis will have become 
detached and blown away, so that we see, conspicuous in the 
lower epidermis, which remains on the leaf, a round hole” 
(The Natural History of the Tineina, 4: 80). The larva mines 
in the normal manner of phyllophagous Coleophora, leaving 
each epidermis intact; then, when the mine has been com- 
pleted and before it starts on a fresh mine, the larva detaches, 
but does not eat, the upper epidermis. The detachment is not 
always complete and sometimes the cuticle remains fastened 
at a point on its circumference. This behaviour seems to be 
optional and a few mines will be present which have the 
normal coleophorid pattern. As I write, I have before me a 
spray of hawthorn attacked in typical fashion. Out of 14 
mines, 8 have the upper epidermis missing, 4 have it almost 
excised but still adhering to the mine, and 2 have it intact. 
In one of the mines the epidermis was fully detached but 
retained in position by the curling of the leaf. The habit 
occurs on hawthorn and apple but I have not yet observed 
mines on birch this season. It is hard to explain the purpose 
of this behaviour. C. siccifolia is one of the species which 
often makes several mines in the same leaf and it is possible 
that it destroys its old mine to prevent later borings from 
amalgamating with it. At all events the habit provides the 
lepidopterist with a unique character for recognition. C. 
violacea (Str6m) sometimes takes a ring from the upper epi- 
dermis to add to its case, but it never removes it entirely. 
A. M. Emmet, Labrey Cottage, Victoria Gardens, Saffron 
Walden, Essex, CB11 3AF. 23 August 1980. 


peal 


In Support of the Re-Introduction and Supervision 
of Certain Endangered Lepidoptera 


By L. McLeEop* 


Approximately one year ago I was very surprised to 
read certain passages of a book review by Mr. E. H. Wild 
of “Butterflies on my Mind” by Dulcie Gray. (Ent. Rec. J. 
Var. 90, p. 316). Although I agree with much of what Mr. 
Wild had to say, I feel that I cannot accept without comment, 
some of his personal views of butterfly conservation which 
he expressed in his book review. 

One statement in particular aroused my indignation. I 
quote ‘‘The cases of the Large Copper at Wood Walton and 
of the Swallowtail at Wicken are examples of useless endeav- 
our.”’ I have waited in vain for twelve months for comment 
from other readers of the Record, and can only assume that 
I must be part of a small minority who find this statement 
repulsive. 

Come, come, Mr. Wild. Criticising a lady on her views 
of conservation and at the same time leaving yourself open 
to similar criticism. 

Although I have never seen the Large Copper at Wood 
Walton, I am sure that the sight of these insects has given 
pleasure to many people. This alone makes it a worthwhile 
endeavour. I recall with pleasure my first encounter with 
Lycaena dispar rutilus in Italy (McLeod 1974), and I am 
personally thankful that one can at least see L. dispar batavus 
alive in its natural habitat. What a pity that action was not 
taken last century before our own subspecies became extinct. 
How often in the future, I wonder, will these same words 
be echoed? 

Many examples can be quoted of successful re-introduc- 
tion of mammals and birds into new reserves or into areas 
where they had been exterminated by man’s endeavours. 
Sometimes the only living colonies from which introductions 
could be made were captive colonies in private zoos. Obvious 
examples are Pére David’s Deer and the Arabian Oryx (Fitter 
1967, Clarke 1977, Jungius 1978). 

As an extension from this it is quite logical that the same 
procedure can be applied to insects. Although there may be 
several examples, the only one which comes to mind is 
that of L. dispar batavus which was re-introduced from 
England to a reserve in its native country Holland. I acknow- 
ledge that the problems involved are different and perhaps 
more difficult. Obviously continuous inbreeding under arti- 
ficial conditions is not to be recommended, but this was not 
the case with Papilio machaon at Wicken (Dempster et al 
1976), or L. dispar. 

It is also a valid point to note that the Norfolk Broads, 
where P. machaon occurs, is in a decline as far as wildlife 


* Quartier des Ecoles, St. Pierre de Vassols, France. 


Dae ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/1X/80 


is concerned, whereas Wicken Fen is not. The Swallowtail in 
Norfolk may not be in danger now but can we be sure that 
the present pollution ( very well illustrated in a recent Anglia 
Television film — ‘“‘No Lullaby for Broadland’’) and alter- 
ation (a current project) of the Broads will not increase, 
thus endangering the largest and most beautiful of our already 
reduced number of butterfly species. Surely it is common- 
sense to attempt a re-introduction into an area where it 
‘“‘recently” occurred, as well as trying to maintain its present 
locality. Should such an attempt at re-introduction fail, (as 
I believe with the Swallowtail at Wicken) then at least we 
have learnt something and we have information which is 
extremly useful for the next attempt. 

No, Mr. Wild. The introduction/re-introduction of un- 
common or rare species into suitable habitats is certainly not, 
to my mind, useless endeavour. The maintenance of captive 
or “protected” stock to ensure survival is also worthwhile. 
‘Take care of the habitat and the species will take care of 
themselves, if possible.’’ A very nice slip-clause at the end, 
Mr. Wild. It hints of a slight uncertainty on your part. Have 
you not heard of Murphy’s and Finnigan’s Laws? When 
considering the survival of a species one must be prepared 
for all possible catastrophes. 

The recent “extinction” of Maculinea arion in Britain 
would not have occurred if conservation of the species had 
begun sooner (Ratcliffe 1979) or if thorough ecological studies 
had been completed ten years ago. I maintain a hope that 
there might still be a small undiscovered population surviving 
somewhere in Britain (see Lodge 1979) from which intro- 
ductions to other areas might eventually be made. 

Let us hope that the recent government cuts in spending 
will not effect the work of the Institute of Terrestrial 
Ecology and the Nature Conservancy Council. Economics 
and organisation are probably the main factors limiting 
wildlife conservation, and organisations such as these are of 
primary importance in this field. This view was also expressed 
by Morton (1979,) although in a somewhat different fashion. 
The recent “‘extinction”’ of the Large Blue in Britain is surely 
a warning to us all, especially the vast numbers of amateur 
entomologists, that now is the time to begin greater efforts 
at understanding the requirements of our insect fauna. If 
adequate funds are not available (as expressed by Mr. Morton) 
then the studies must be carried out by those of us who are 
not concerned with financial gain and by those who have 
adequate time on their hands. Are there no longer people 
who have a passionate interest in such subjects? 

_I will leave readers with a quotation from Dr. Ratcliffe, 
which I consider to be very appropriate here. ‘Nothing is safe 
now, anywhere in the world. How much survives will depend 
on how many people care, how much they care, and what 
they are prepared to do.” 


RE-INTRODUCTION & SUPERVISION ENDANGERED LEP. 223 


References 

Clarke, J., 1977. Reserve for Arabian Oryx. Oryx, 14: 31-35. 

Dempster, J. P., King M. L., Lakhano K. H., 1976. The Status of the 
Swallowtail Butterfly in Britain. Ecological Entomology, 1: 71-84. 

Fitter, R., 1967. Conserevation by Captive Breeding — a General 
Survey, Oryx, 9: 87-96. 

Jungius H., 1978. Plan to Restore Arabian Oryx in Oman. Oryx, 14: 
329-336. 

Lodge, J. C., 1979. Large Blue. Letter to the Daily Telegraph, 24th 
September. 

McLeod, L., 1974. Lycaena dispar rutilus Werneberg. A Chance Meeting 
at Ravenna, Italy. Ent. Rec. J. Var. 86: 68. 

Ratcliffe, D., 1979. The end of the Large Blue Butterfly. New Scientist. 
84 (1180): 457-458. 

Morton, A. C., 1979. Large Blue. Letter to the New Scientist 22nd 
November 1979 New Scientist. 84: (1182): 641. 


Current Literature 


Life on Forty Acres by Barry Phillip Moore. Pp. xii, 184; 
numerous illustrations. E. W. Classey, 1978. £5.50. 

I was first acquainted with this work in 1979, while still 
an expatriate Australian experiencing the rigours of the nasty 
arctic winter of that year in darkest Britain. I’d had enough 
and was eagerly awaiting transportation to the colony some- 
time in March, once home to savour again those wonderful 
commodities or sunshine and an exhilarating wild environ- 
ment. Then Barry Moore’s book arrived. I read the first 
chapter and the yearning for home increased. It is by no 
means a sentimental book, rather a leisurely account of the 
natural history of its fortunate author’s forty acres of bush- 
land in the Australian Capital Territory. 

Dr. Moore, like myself, is not Australian by birth, but 
rather by choice. We both arrived coincidentally in the same 
year, 1958, and although we’ve never met seem to have 
interesting parallels in our experiences in this the largest 
Island. I am not as fortunate as Dr. Moore, being a good 37 
acres short of somewhere to spend my life —but his book 
brought back to me the joys and frustrations of owning my 
own piece of Australian Bush. 

He named his property “‘Calosoma”’ after the beautiful 
green caterpillar-hunting beetle Calosoma schayeri very com- 
mon in the district. The book opens with an account of his 
choice ofa suitable site and the trials and tribulations of 
getting himself established. There is the poignant and simple 
account of his wife’s tragic death before the dream could be 
realised, but from there he strides forward to achieve it alone. 
The following chapters contain a most entertaining and 
scientific (yes the two are compatible) discourse of the fauna 
and flora of Calosoma. Dr. Moore’s obvious knowledge and 
interests in entomology and botany are highlighted throughout 
his writing and field sketches. He has, however, a deep 
spiritual affinity for his land and ail its creatures. His des- 
cription of his first winter in the district, the great cover of 
whiteness on the higher ground is pure delight. I am reminded 


224 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/IX/80 


of the writings of an earlier naturalist who spent 10 years in 
New South Wales, and left us an account of his impressions. 
George Cayley, Sir Joseph Bank’s collector, is a fine contrast 
for his less involved style. Cayley was also an observer of 
contemporary politics and society — but Dr. Moore is never- 
theless perceptive of the influences of our own society on the 
relict wilderness of the late twentieth century. In his final 
chapter — the Calm before the Storm—he asks pertinent 
questions about the apparently conflicting needs of man and 
nature. Gently does he chide conservationists for their com- 
mon failing of the tendency to over-sentimentality, which, 
he points out ultimately only leads to despair. 

The book is however all about conserving and nurturing 
in the noblest possible sense. It is an account by a connoisseur 
of creation, written with a soft quill and a strong wrist, of a 
glorious forty acres (16 hectares if you’re metrically mad 
and devoid of a sense of poetry —the two are not mutually 
exclusive) that he sees as temporarily permanent (if I may be 
excused the paradox). I strongly recommend that it be read 
by the greenest of conservationists and the most philistine of 
politico-industrialists. In between these extremes, of course, 
those of us who have no can to kick would do well to read 
this beautiful book often and with great care. — BERNARD 
D’ ABRERA. 


Notes and Observations 


CONCERNING THE SCARCE VAPOURER MOTH: ORGYIA 
RECENS HUuEBNER. — My first acquaintance with the elusive 
Scarce Vapourer dates back to the 1930s when my wife and I 
found a number of ornate larvae in the vicinity of Hatfield 
Moor, South Yorkshire, then a happy hunting ground for 
Lepidoptera, but today, alas, far less so because of destructive 
fires and excessive peat-cutting. My wife noticed the first of 
the striking larvae, and called my attention to it. We subse- 
quently found upwards of 20. They varied considerably in size, 
and in this respect I should mention that the females when 
mature are always larger than males of the species. I must 
also add that through not having previously seen larvae of 
the Scarce Vapourer I was at first uncertain of their identity. 
I wondered if they belonged to the allied Common Vapourer 
(Orgyia antiqua L.), but soon realised my error, and concluded 
that the intriguing strangers were indeed of the rarer species 
—gonostigma as it was then known. It is interesting to record 
that they were feeding on sallow, heather and hawthorn. 
More larvae were found subsequently on birch, wildrose and 
meadowsweet. 

Reference to the “List of Yorkshire Lepidoptera” by 
G. T. Porrit, 2nd edition, 1904, led to the brief entry regarding 
the species as “‘Very local in the county, including Doncaster 
and Sheffield’’. But following the discovery already described, 
larvae of the Scarce Vapourer continued to be found in large 
numbers in this part of Yorkshire, including Thorne Moor, 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 225 


and a locality within three miles of the centre of Doncaster. 
Further afield, larvae were taken at Skipwith Common, near 
Selby, at Laughton Forest, North Lincs., and in a few parts 
of North Notts. There seemed good reason to believe that the 
species was well established and in no danger of a serious 
decline in numbers. Such is wishful thinking! 

In subsequent years friends visited Doncaster and district 
to collect larvae of the Scarce Vapourer, among them the 
late Baron Charles de Worms, who spent a weekend with us. 
He was delighted to see the handsome larvae in the wild as 
previously he had reared only larvae supplied by others. In 
those years of plenty also some other friends tried hopefully 
to obtain pairings of O. recens and O. antiqua, but as far as I 
am aware they had no success. In this respect it should be 
remembered that the two species normally appear at different 
times. My own experience has led to the conclusion that in 
this area of Yorkshire O. recens is only single brooded, the 
moths appearing mainly in the second half of July while O. 
antiqua is on the wing (males only) in late August and Sep- 
tember. South refers to O. recens being double brooded, but 
I have seen no proof of this — at least in the wild. Incidentally, 
of course, O. recens passes the winter in the larval stage, 
hibernating while small, but ova of O. antiqua normally remain 
unhatched until the spring. 

More recently the well known lepidopterist, Sir Cyril 
Clarke, had hopes of obtaining pairings of O. recens and an 
allied species from Japan, but in spite of strenuous efforts we 
were unfortunately unable to find any larvae of recens to help 
in the experiment. Newly emerged females of the Japanese 
species were also sent to me by Sir Cyril for assembling, but 
they failed to attract any males of O. recens. 

Unfortunately, at the present time O. recens is obviously 
rare in its old South Yorkshire haunts — even if it now exists 
at all! In spite of more careful searching this year, 1980, by 
myself and friends, our efforts have so far been unrewarded. 
Those who study lepidoptera are usually aware of the fluctua- 
tions in numbers of many species from year to year, so we 
must hope that the Scarce Vapourer will again become less 
scarce. In conclusion let me add that I would welcome com- 
ments on this note, especially any that might refer to the 
present status of O. recens in other parts of Britain. — 
GEORGE E. HypbE, 26 Warnington Drive, Bessacarr, Doncaster, 
S. Yorkshire DN4 6SS. 

THE THADEUS W. HARRIS AND SAMUEL H. SCUDDER PAPERS. 
— Harris (1795-1856) and Scudder (1837-1911) were two of the 
most significant and influential nineteenth-century American 
entomologists, and their work needs no elucidation here. As 
the location of their papers is not generally known even in the 
United States, and because both had extensive and important 
British and Continental contacts, as was usual in that period 
of extensive trans-marine communication (with many excep- 
tions, American entomology was still partially dependent on 
the work of European taxonomists), a brief comment on 


226 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/1X/80 


these collections of manuscripts will be useful to both overseas 
and American workers. 

The major portions of both collections are now in the 
Museum of Science, Science Park, Boston Massachusetts, 
having come there as part of the holdings of the Boston 
Society of Natural History. Historically, that Society’s 
treasures of manuscripts and books were scattered far and 
wide, so that some of Harris’ and Scudder’s materials are 
found in other libraries, such as the Museum of Comparative 
Zoology, Harvard; the Houghton Library, Harvard; and even 
such relatively small collections as my own. 

The Harris Papers in the Boston museum are in 22 bound 
volumes and supplements, and include notes and drawings of 
various orders; MS. lectures and papers; production materials 
for his most important work, A treatise on some of the insects 
of New England which are injurious to vegetation (1841 and a 
number of later eds.); lists of exchanges of insects; indices of 
insects described by Thomas Say and others; notes on Say’s 
descriptions of insects; miscellaneous mss. and drawings; and 
extensive correspondence. The latter is especially interesting 
as in this pioneer period Harris had to seek out, as did Say, 
the decisions and opinions of British and continental workers. 
Surely the most interesting correspondence of this sort is with 
Edward Doubleday (see for example that which establishes 
the priority of the important events in the history of “‘sugar- 
ing’, Entomologist’s Rec. J. Var. 88:23-25). E. Doubleday’s 
important entomological correspondence is sparse enough in 
collections that this accumulation alone is of interest. Some 
of Harris’ letters in edited form, have been published in 
Entomological Correspondence of Thaddeus William Harris, 
ed. S. H. Scudder (Boston, 1869), but despite Scudder’s impec- 
cable credentials as an entomologist, the original correspond- 
ence must be consulted for accuracy. 

Scudder’s own papers (about the equivalent of 13 shelf 
feet) are presently unorganized in the Boston repository and 
are contained in file drawers. There is extensive correspond- 
ence (9 feet) with American, British and continental scientists 
and others. Because of Scudder’s interest in the history of 
entomology, his correspondence has a retrospective view as 
well as contemporary significance; for example, he investigates 
the origins and activities of the London entomologist John 
Abbot (1751-1840 or 41) in America, but of course the bulk 
of his letters concerned his massive work in nineteenth- 
century entomology and palaeontology. Other Scudder 
materials include lists of insects; diaries; miscellaneous notes; 
production materials for and copies of his works with emenda- 
tions and additional observations; many drawings and photo- 
graphs; and cuttings. Until final arrangement of Scudder’s 
papers the total amount of significant overseas material will 
not be known. However, a project is now under way which 
will hopefully make both the Harris and Scudder Papers 
available on microfilm.—Dr. RoNaLp S. WILKINSON, The 
American Museum of Natural History, New York 10024. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS Ba 


RELAXING INSECTS. — I was much interested to read the 
note by P. J. Johnson (Ent. Rec., 92:49) on this subject. I 
recollect reading elsewhere of the use of spirit as a relaxing 
agent but cannot at the moment recall the reference. 

However the point on which I wish to comment concerns 
the prevention of mould, In my early days of collecting this 
presented a real and annoying problem when relaxing insects. 
I recollect that the addition of phenol was supposed to prevent 
mould in relaxing boxes. This I recall was not very effective. 
In the last few years I have developed a method which seems 
to prevent mould occurring in the relaxing box. 

For purposes of relaxing insects, and I refer mainly to 
lepidoptera, I use a plastic box of suitable size with a more or 
less air-tight lid. In the bottom of the box is placed a thick 
layer of folded white lint. The charge consists mainly of 
water but to it is added about 25 ml of a super-saturated 
solution of Chlorocresol. (This is made up by adding chloro- 
cresol to warm water until there is an excess of undissolved 
chemical.) 

I found an old relaxing box recently, treated in this way 
over two years ago and containing a few butterflies which 
had not been set. Though the butterflies were completely 
water-logged there was no trace of mould whatever, 

Chlorocresol is obtainable from the chemist’s shop and 
while not very cheap a 100 gm bottle will charge many relax- 
ing boxes. Once the relaxing boxes are charged it is only 
necessary from time to time to add a little more water as 
required — the chlorocresol remains for a long time. — Dr. 
NEVILLE L. BIRKETT, Kendal Wood, New Hutton, Cumbria 
LA8 0AQ. 


SURGICAL SPIRIT AS A RELAXING AGENT. — With reference 
to Mr. Johnson’s note under this heading (1980, Ent. Rec., 
92: 49), ordinary methylated spirits are equally suitable as 
a relaxing agent. I first drew attention to this in 1929 (Ento- 
mologist, 62:284), and repeated it in 1953 (Ent. Rec., 65: 
197). One point that Mr. Johnson does not mention is the 
rapidity with which spirit-relaxed specimens dry out; this 
results in great economies in the use of setting boards. — 
D. G. SEVASTOPULO, F.R.E.S., P.O. Box 95617, Mombasa 
(Nyali). 


Aquatic INsecTs. — Investigating a water-filled sandpit 
at Stone, Buckinghamshire, recently, some young companions 
and I discovered a variety of interesting insects. On 6th April, 
for example, 15-year old Ralph Woodward fished out an evil- 
smelling wooden post, within a fissure of which was the full- 
grown nymph of an Aeshnid dragonfly. In the same post were 
a large number of caddis larvae (Phryganea sp.), with black 
and yellow striped head and thorax. Later, in captivity, the 
Aeshna nymph seized and partially devoured one of the caddis, 
although the remainder of the latter were quite prepared to 


228 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/1X/80 


nip the nymph’s legs as it passed! Next day my young 
companion found a specimen of the saucer bug, Ilyocoris 
cimicoides, while on the 12th of the month his friend Gary 
Mead netted a very sluggish water stick-insect, Ranatra 
linearis. Watching the pond-skaters (Gerris sp.) dashing hither 
and thither, and the Gyrinus whirligig beetles engaged in their 
characteristic circulatory motion, it was amusing to see a 
pond-skater leap over a whirligig when it happened to bar its 
progress! How sad it is that the pit in question is threatened 
with imminent in-filling by a local refuse contractor. At one 
time the whole area was something of a haven for the 
entomologist, with a wealth of dragonflies and numerous 
sallows which supported such moth species as puss and sallow 
kitten, herald, grey dagger, buff-tip and eyed-hawk. Nearly 
all is now gone, replaced by a foul-smelling wilderness. — 
ANTHONY Wootton, 40 Roundhill, Stone, Near Aylesbury, 
Bucks. HP17 8RD. 


A NOTE FROM THE ISLE OF THANET. — The first Cynthia 
cardui L. I saw at Dumpton Gap on 7th August at about 
7.50 a.m. when two were observed, since when I have fre- 
quently seen the butterfly at Dumpton, Ramsgate and today 
at Joss Bay. On the other hand, I have only seen one Vanessa 
atalanta L. all summer. I have a record of the dipteron 
Volucella zonaria Poda at Dumpton on 14th August. — M. R. 
LoncGpon, 97, Dumpton Park Drive, Broadstairs, Kent, 7.ix.80. 


THE Cardui INvAsSION. — 5th June 1980 — a sunny 
morning, but distant dark clouds and rumbles of thunder. I 
was working on my vegetables plot when, about 10.00 hrs. a 
remarkably fresh looking V. cardui settled on the bare earth 
a few yards away. When disturbed, it flew off, but it or another 
was sighted shortly afterwards on my valerian patch. Soon 
the threatened thunderstorm broke and rain continued for the 
rest of the day. This was the day on which 50 caravans 
were destroyed by a mini tornado at Nairn. 6th June —a 
sunny day with cloudless sky. The magnitude of the migration 
became evident, with cardui to be seen wherever there was 
something on which to feed — in particular, aubrietia, 
valerian and lilac. In the afternoon I had occasion to visit 
St. Andrews and there cardui was in abundance in the gardens. 
The main attraction seemed to be lilac. 7th June — back in 
Crieff, I visited the local A. euphrosyne colony. In this very 
early season euphrosyne was no longer in evidence, but its 
place on the bugle patches was taken over by cardui. 

A short survey in Argyll and West Inverness-shire on 
11th/12th June showed the presence of cardui to be wide- 
spread. Isolated specimens were encountered in Easdale (O.S. 
17/71), Glen Lonan (17/92) and Appin (17/94). At Loch 
Arkaig (27/09, 18, 19) however, cardui was again abundant, 
feeding on Common Catsear and early Bramble blossom along 
miles of roadside verges. In 55 years I have seen nothing like 


this migration. — J. R. Mutver, Sealladh-Mhor, Crieff, 
Perthshire. 


JUST PUBLISHED 


Allan, P. B. M. LEAVES FROM A MOTH HUNTER’S 
NOTEBOOKS 


This long awaited book is now published. The title 
needs some explanation as the contents deal a great 
deal with butterflies rather than moths. During his life 
the author published many notes and longer pieces 
in entomological journals under the pseudonym ‘’An 
Old Moth Hunter’’ and he suggested the present title. 
The text was complete before his death but he never 
had time to check it. It has been ably edited and an 
interesting an informative Introduction added by Dr. 
R. S. Wilkinson, the well known American biblio- 
grapher and a friend of the author. 

Price £9.00 


D’Abrera, Bernard. THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE AFRO-TROPICAL 


REGION 


A magnificent folio work of over 600 pages. It covers 
all the species (other than the Hesperiidae) of the 
African Continent south of the small palaearctic 
region in the far north. 

All the species are illustrated, natural size, in colour. 
Price £60.50 


The. Rev. 


Joseph Green. PUPA DIGGING, 1857 


A facsimile reprint of this interesting and celebrated 
booklet with a short introduction by E. W. Classey. 
Price £2.00 


Edward Newman. MEMOIR OF THE LIFE AND WORKS OF 
EDWARD NEWMAN. By his Son. 1876. 


A facsimile reprint of a very rare booklet which 
is of both historical and bibliographical interest as 
well as being a very readable biography. With a short 
introduction by E. W. Classey. 

Price £2.50 


ALL PRICES SHOWN ARE INCLUSIVE OF POSTAGE 


These are our most recently published titles. 
A complete list of publications can be supplied on application. 
All the above titles can be supplied by return for cash with 
order from 


E. W. CLASSEY LTD. 
P.O. BOX 93, FARINGDON, OXON. SN7 7DR 
They may also be ordered through any reputable bookseller. 


EXCHANGE AND WANTS 


Wanted. — Hawk-moths of Gt. Britain and Europe by Hug Newman and 
a good French handbook on French butterflies. —J. A. D. Smith, Fair 
Oak, Portsmouth Road, Esher, Surrey KT10 9PJ. 


Wanted. —The Entomologist, 1965, vol. 98. Entomologist’s Weekly 
Intelligencer, vols. 3 and 10. Pamphlets by J. W. Tutt— 100 Practical 
Hints on the British Eupitheciids. Notes on the Zygaenidae. ‘Coridon’ 
Magazine Series A, no. 1 Abs. of British Zygaena and parts A 2, 3, 4, 5 
and B 3. Any Amateur Entomologist’s Society Journals and Bulletins 
before January 1939. Forster A. H. List of Lep. of Herts. 1937 from 
Trans. Herts. Nat. Hist. Soc. —D. E. Wilson, Joyce House, Green Tye, 
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CONTENTS 


About the reported occurrence of Maniola telmessia Zeller on 
Angistri Island, Greece. J. G. COUTSIS ... ve ee 


Melanargia russiae Esper from Greece. J. G. COUTSIS 


The Reappearance of Lysandra eaaane Rott. in the Chilterns. Dr. 
A. J. SHOWLER  .:: 


Coleophora prunifoliae Doets Gens Calenphoriaeent a species New 
to Britain and a consideration of C. cerasivorella Packard and 
C. coracipennella (Heubner). R. HECKFORD : 


A New Form of Maniola jurtina L. related to M. jurtina ab 
postaurolancia Leeds. Maj. Gen. C. G. LIPSCOMB io ah 


Gibraltar and Morocco, 1979. W. J. TENNENT 


Cercyon granarius Erichson (Col.: tags ey em NY as 
British. J. A. PARRY EN 


A Few Interesting Sawfly Records ait Saatheas Scotland: (ym. 
Symphyta). A. D. LISTON . ‘ : 


A New Trap for Carrion Flies. Y. Z. ERZINCLIOGLU 


In Support of the Re-Introduction and Supervision of Certain 
Endangered Lepidoptera. L. McLEOD ... sos ae 


Notes and Observations: 


On the Ovipositing Habits of the White Admiral: aie 
camilla L. A. S. HARMER .... ae 


Early Occurrence of Lepidoptera on the isle of leahney in 1980. 
Dr J CAMPBBLE iis te 


The Vestal: Rhodometra sacraria L. in Sassen P. E WALLEY 


The Slender Burnished Brass: Roe orichalcea F. A. S. 
HARMER ate 


The Silver-striped Havamottt Hippotion tae L. in Yor 
shire. P. Q. WINTER . 3 : 


Feral Rhodometra sacraria fe discharging meconium, E, Ss. 
BRADFORD H, 


Foodplants of Te ae ane Zz. HL © 1. 
GODFRAY Be : 


Meathop Moss and Catcrag ios, Withersiack 4. KETCHEN 


The Silver-barred: Deltote bankiana F. in Essex. J. B. 
FISHER : nee 


Palpita unionalis He in SE. Baeiiad: P. SOKOLOFF. 


The Large Tortoiseshell Oy eeats poy ini gar 
in 1980. Miss J. WEIR . 


The Larval Feeding of Coleophora sccifola Stt. Lt. Col. A. M. 
EMMET ... ; 


Concerning the Sines Vapourer ‘Moth: Orevia recens Hon, 
G. E. HYDE a : 


The Thadeus W. Harris se Seiad H. ‘See Papers Dr. 
R. S. WILKINSON _... 


Relaxing Insects. Dr. N. L. BIRKETT 

Surgical Spirit as a Relaxing Agent. D. G. SEVASTOPULO . 
Aquatic Insects. A. WOOTTON oi 

A Note from the Isle of Thanet. M. R. LONGDON 

The Cardui invasion. J. R. MILLER 


Current Literature 


197 
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199 


201 


205 
206 


211 


216 
219 


221 


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198 
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200 


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229 


The Heath Fritillary, Mellicta athalia Rott. in 
Britain: Notes on Distribution and Ecology 


By Dru. J, LUckENs* 


The known natural distribution of Mellicta athalia Rott. 
in Britain is at present confined to the counties of Kent, 
Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. Within these counties the 
butterfly is generally further restricted to very local and 
sparsely scattered colonies. Some of these are remarkably 
sedentary, particularly in the West Country localities, while 
others tend to be somewhat peripetatic. In the Kentish colonies, 
which are perhaps better documented than any other, the 
latter habit prevails — I believe because of the heavy reliance 
of this strain of athalia on Melampyrum pratense, the Cow- 
wheat, as pabulum. This plant appears to thrive best in 
recently coppiced areas, and though it is quite tolerant of 
shade is quickly smothered by bracken or bramble. Hence, 
the statement that “the butterfly follows the wood-cutter”’ 
has some relevance in this particular area. I hope to expand 
on this further, but a comment on the past and present distri- 
bution of athalia in Kent is perhaps indicated at this stage. 

A survey of this butterfly’s fortunes in the county is 
provided in Volume | of J. M. Chalmers- Hunt’s Butterflies 
and Moths of Kent, and it is from this excellent work that 
the following facts have been extracted. At one time Kentish 
athalia occurred in Chattenden Great Wood, and very locally 
in some of the remnants of the Great Wealden Forest between 
the Sussex border and Dover. It seems probable however, 
that since the 1940’s it has been confined to the large block 
of woodland north of Canterbury, generally referred to as 
Blean Woods, after the ancient village of that name mentioned 
in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. Here the butterfly occurs in 
mobile colonies over the wooded area from Herne south-west 
to Dunkirk. One of these colonies I kept under intermittent 
observation for over eight years. My wife and I found a small 
localised group of athalia in a part of Church Wood in 1968. 
It was our first encounter with athalia in Britain, and we 
were delighted to stumble on it, after an extensive search 
within that wood. There appeared to be no other colonies 
nearby, and the butterflies, perhaps twenty in all, were flitting 
over a twenty yard strip of heather, bracken and Cow-wheat 
on the edge of a newly-felled area of several acres. We next 
returned in July, 1970, when the site looked completely 
different. The chestnut stumps had sprouted into scattered 
bushes, and in between, the yellow Cow-wheat and Tormentil 
flowers clustered amongst young heather and bracken shoots. 
The few butterflies of 1968 had produced a colony of several 
hundred, scattered over almost the whole of the cleared area. 
The original small heathy site was very difficult to identify 
because the wood had encroached. Some butterflies, however, 


* 52 Thorold Road, Bitterne Park, Southampton, SO2 4JG. 


230 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 


had spread about two hundred yards into a wide, sunny oak 
ride which, though it looked virtually unchanged, had held 
no athalia two years previously. The following year we were 
living in Ashford, Kent, and were able to make more frequent 
visits. A few larvae were seen during the spring, all of them 
on or near Cow-wheat. On the 17th of June, no imagines 
were seen, but both sexes were still fresh on July 14th, when 
we returned from a fortnight’s holiday in Cornwall (there the 
local athalia had been mostly extremely worn). My impression 
was that the numbers had, if anything, declined from the 
previous year, but the season was a cold and generally late one 
in Kent in 1971. The site in Church Wood was re-visited on 
June 29th, 1973, at the height of the emergence season. There 
were hundreds of athalia flying but much of the area was 
becoming overgrown, and the butterflies were more restricted 
than before, mainly to the remaining open spaces at the 
fringe of the mature forest where Melampyrum still flourished. 
In such an area, one could stand still and see thirty or forty 
specimens at once. Among them a fresh ab. cymothoe 
Bertolini looked very distinctive. 

By 1974 the site had become overgrown. A few male 
athalia lingered beside the edge of the oak wood and along 
the path, but the Cow-wheat had become very sparse. Good 
clumps of the food plant could still be found in the afore- 
mentioned oak ride, but the butterfly had withdrawn from 
there once again. The following year in late spring I had 
great difficulty in finding any Melampyrum at all, and the 
site had reverted to a solid chestnut thicket totally unsuited 
to athalia 

Both the rise and fall of this colony was thus extremely 
rapid, taking perhaps only one or two seasons in each case, 
but a relative peak was maintained for at least four seasons. 

Since 1970 I have observed several other colonies of 
athalia in Blean Woods, and all of these have had the charac- 
teristic clumps of Melampyrum, usually growing along an 
open ride or among well-lit chestnut coppice. In the Butter- 
flies and Moths of Kent one instance of Veronica chamaedrys 
as pabulum is given, but only “‘after the M. pratense had been 
mostly eaten up.’’ There is also one instance of larvae feeding 
commonly on Plantago lanceolata. J. M. Chalmers-Hunt 
states, however, that the normal food plant of this species in 
Kent is common Cow-wheat, and himself records finding 
larvae abundantly feeding on this plant shortly before dusk. 
I believe that it is this decided preference for, if not depen- 
dence upon, Melampyrum, and hence the entire coppicing 
cycle, that has been the chief factor in the well-recorded shift- 
ing colonies of this ecologically specialised Kentish race of 
athalia. 

Elsewhere, both in England and on the Continent, the 
Butterfly appears far more catholic in its tastes, both with 
regard to pabulum and habitat. In Devon and Cornwall the 
butterfly frequents stream banks, heathy scrubby slopes and 


HEATH FRITILLARY MELLICTA ATHALIA ROTT. IN BRITAIN 231 


also grassy hillsides far from any sizeable trees, as well as 
woodland clearings. In all of the West Country colonies I 
have visited (three in Cornwall and one in Devon) Melam- 
pyrum is present, but certainly not enough to support entirely 
the more flourishing populations. I have only once found 
larvae in Cornwall, and that was on plantain; but in the same 
strong colony, in 1974, the larvae were found feeding on a 
variety of food plants, including foxglove, speedwell, yarrow 
and woodsage. On this occasion, despite the large spreads 
of Melampyrum in the locality, the larvae appeared to be 
ignoring it completely. The resulting brood of imagines was 
exceptionally abundant that year (A. Creber, in litt. 1974). 

Regarding M. athalia, in the Natural History of British 
Butterflies (1871),Edward Newman gives his usual accurate 
description of a life-history, and also points out the uncanny 
resemblance of the full-grown larva to a plantain head. He 
mentions as food plants all of the following: Plantago lanceo- 
lata, P. major, Veronica chamaedrys and Teucrium scoro- 
donia (Woodsage), and fails to include Melampyrum at all. 
Significantly perhaps, Edward Newman’s larvae were supplied 
by a Mr. Bignall, whom I assume to be the same person 
later listed as a recorder of the species near Plymouth. It seems 
not unreasonable to infer that Bignall might also have been 
the source of information on the food plants which correspond 
so closely to those used by West Country athalia today. Another 
of Newman’s recorders, J. J. Reading, also mentions finding 
larvae feeding on P. lanceolata and T. scorodonia, and though 
he fails to specify the site of occurrence he does give a list 
of several Devon localities. In direct contrast to this is the 
account in Richard South’s Butterflies of the British Isles 
(1921), in which Cow-wheat is emphasised as the main food 
plant — all the references to life history given here are to 
Kent and Sussex. An interesting point is made in the same 
account, when Buckler is quoted as stating that his larvae 
would not eat plantain at all’. I believe that the usual food 
plant of athalia in Devon and Cornwall is in fact plantain 
(as is probably also the case in much of the rest of Europe), 
but perhaps in years of abundance there is a temporary shift 
to other plants as well. 

These characteristics of the western race of British atha- 
lia may explain the more static nature of many of the 
colonies, as plantain requires conditions far less specialised 
than those of Melampyrum, and is generally of course a 
much commoner plant. This also furnishes greater opportunity 
for these colonies to find other breeding sites within the area, 


*T have in the past bred both Kentish and Cornish athalia (for several 

generations in each case) and used plantain solely for inducing the 
females to oviposit. Both strains of larvae accepted this readily, as 
they did Digitalis — when their increasing appetite made this more 
convenient to use. In captivity Kentish females would oviposit on 
plantain, but I thought reluctantly, and certainly fewer ova were 
obtained on average than from their Cornish counterparts. 


232 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 


if for some reason the primary one should become unsuitable. 
I observed such a circumstance at a Devon locality, where in 
1972 the butterflies were concentrated in a small space of 
approximately 50 yards by 5 yards, and were in great profu- 
sion. Upon a further visit in 1976, this original site had become 
overgrown, and the butterflies had spread into several neigh- 
bouring spaces which appeared not to have changed since the 
previous visit, although at that time they had harboured no 
athalia at all. More static conditions have occurred in another 
better known Cornish site in the middle of a wood above 
the Tamar, where for at least the last ten years there has 
been no more than slight shifts of local abundance in a 
thriving colony’. 

At present the centres of distribution in Devon and Corn- 
wall seem to be (1) the middle part of the Tamar Valley, (2) 
scattered woodland around Callington and (3) the western 
fringes of Dartmoor. Formerly there were colonies near Looe 
and on Dartmoor itself, and perhaps some of these may yet 
survive®. I am reliably informed that the species still occurs 
in Somerset around Exmoor, but have no first-hand knowledge 
of its habits there. 

Historically athalia has been found in several other English 
counties. In spite of repeated assertions in some books it no 
longer occurs in Abbots Wood, its only known Sussex locality, 
nor has it existed there naturally for at least the last half 
century.At one time however, it was abundant in this famous 
locality, and C. V. C. Levett (E. Newman, 1871) describes 
having ten in the net at one time. It was re-introduced into 
Abbots Wood, in about 1935, and this colony survived for 
probably no more than twenty years, although for a while it 
appeared to be holding its own quite well‘. In Essex a native 
race of athalia died out in about 1890, in its last locality in 
the Dedham area. In 1925 however, it was re-introduced in 
the Hadleigh Woods, and ten years later a few miles north 
at Hockley. At Hadleigh, especially, it took very well, and 
survived for over forty years. In its heyday it was so abundant 
that the larvae could sometimes be found feeding on various 
cultivated plants, such as Antirrhinum, in the gardens of 
houses near the wood (A. Palmer, pers. comm. 1977). The 
colony became increasingly restricted however, until its pre- 
sumed demise in the 1970’s. 

“Cow wheat grows there in small scattered clumps and also straggles 
out around some old drystone walls, but in my experience of this 
locality the females were nearly always encountered on a more open 


grassy slope where there were quite heavy growths of Plantago 
lanceolata. 


* There are specimens in the Booth Museum, Brighton labelled ‘Prince- 
town, Devon, 1901’ (A. Tonge collection). 


“The immediate origin of this introduced stock seems somewhat in 
doubt. L. H. Newman (1954) states that A. H. Pickett transferred 
females direct from Blean Woods, whereas E. B. Ford (1945) says 
the butterflies were brought from Hadleigh, Essex. The Essex race 
at ne time had Kentish ancestry anyway, so the point is an academic 
one only. 


HEATH FRITILLARY MELLICTA ATHALIA ROTT. IN BRITAIN 233 


M. athalia was found in a number of other English 
counties within recorded entomological history — these include 
Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Staffordshire, Suffolk and 
Wiltshire, in additioin to those previously mentioned. E. B. 
Ford (Butterflies, 1945) mentions “ancient records from 
Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, and records the capture of 
a specimen from Gloucestershire “‘within the last few years”’. 
Guiting Wood, near Cheltenham was the nineteenth century 
locality but I am informed that it is not now the sort of 
place one would expect to find athalia. 


With reference to Hampshire there is an intriguing state- 
ment concerning athalia in A. W. Richards’ list of the lepi- 
doptera of the Aldershot district — “‘still to be found in some 
woods in the north’. (Richards,, 1957) It must be presumed 
that this refers to introduced stock but if this is the case it is 
strange that in the same list Melitaea cinxia L. is included 
but carefully specified as having been ‘put down’ on Laffans 
Plain. Dr. J. W. O. Holmes of Borden also showed me two 
specimens he had taken in Woolmer Forest but he felt that 
these were the result of an attempted introduction. 


In view of the extensive range of athalia in Europe and Asia 
it is in some ways remarkable that it has not adapted to other 
parts of temperate Britain. In his comprehensive paper on the 
genus Mellicta, Dr. L. G. Higgins (1955) remarks on the 
unusual powers of adaptability exhibited by athalia in that it 
has managed to establish itself across Europe from the 
Mediterranean to the Arctic ocean and from the coast of 
Brittany to the Pacific. He points out the astonishing variety 
of ecological conditions under which the butterfly exists within 
this area but that it is only in Arctic and subarctic Scandinavia 
that there is a constant distinction in the facies of athalia. 


Throughout the rest of its wide distribution there is so much 
individual variation that general appearance and pattern are 
unreliable chracteristics of geographic race. Nevertheless, in 
an attempt to compare the two British races I have examined 
series in various collections. The only difference I can detect 
concerns minor variation. This seems generally more prevalent 
in the western localities and females from Devon and Cornwall 
regularly occur in two different forms. Both are smaller on 
average than Kentish females but one is very similar if not 
identical in general condition and pattern. The other, however, 
tends to have rather contrasting yellow as well as reddish 
markings within the dark reticulate pattern. This form appears 
only rarely in Kent, but, in my experience, almost as fre- 
quently as the more unicolorous type in the West country. 
Unfortunately no series of set specimens I have examined 
can be said to be a truly random sample so I can only present 
this finding as a general impression. To obtain such a sample 
nowadays would clearly be out of the question in view of the 
somewhat vulnerable status of the butterfly in Britain. 


234 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 
References 


Chalmers-Hunt, J. M. 1961, The Butterflies and Moths of Kent, Vol. 1: 
87-89. 1 142. Buncle, Arbroath. 

Firmin, J., et al. 1975. The Butterflies and Larger Moths of Essex. 34 
Essex Naturalists Trust. 

Ford, E. B., 1945. Butterflies. Collins: New Naturalist. 

Higgins, L. G., 1955. A descriptive catalogue of the genus Mellicta. 
Trans.R. ent. Soc. Soc. Lond. Vol. 106 Part 1. 

Gainsford, A. P., 1972. Observations on British Butterflies in 1971 
Ent. Rec. 84: 88. 

Gainsford, A. P., 1975. Mellicta athalia Rott. in East Cornwall 1974. 
Ent. Rec., 87: 172. 

Luckens, C. J., 1971. Observations on British Butterflies in 1970. Ent. 
Rec., 83: 259. 

Luckens, C. J., 1973a. Observations on British Butterflies in 1971. Ent. 
Rec., 85: 84. 

Luckens, C. J., 1973b. Observations on British Butterflies in 1972. Ent. 
Rec., 85 181. 

Luckens, C. J., 1974. Observations on British Butterflies in 1973. Ent. 

Rec., 86 188. 

Luckens, C. J., 1975. Notes on British Butterflies 1974. Ent. Rec., 
87 202. 

Luckens,, C. J., 1977. Observations on British Butterflies in 1976. Ent. 
Rec., 89 172. 

Luckens, C. J., 1978. Observations on British Butteflies in 1977. Ent. 
Rec., 90 150. 

Newman, E., 1871, Illustrated Natural History of British Butterflies. 
Tweedie London. 

Newman, L. H.,, 1954.Butterfly Farmer. 

Richards, A. W., 1957. The Lepidoptera of the Aldershot District of 
N.E. Hampshore. Ent. Rec., 69: 114-117. 

South, R., 1921. The Butterflies of the British Isles, 98-100 Warne. 

Verity, R., 1940. Revision of the athalia group of the genus Melitaea 
Fab. Trans. R. Ent. Soc. Lond. Vol. 89. Part 14. 


SOME NOTES ON THE VAPOURER MOTH: ORGYIA ANTIQUA L. 
— During 1979 I reared six antiqua larvae which all hatched 
on 22nd April from a single batch of eggs. They eventually 
produced four male imagines and two females. I was most 
interested to discover that the latter required four instars to 
complete their larval growth, the males only three, and wonder 
if this difference has been noted before? Three of the males 
emerged from their cocoons on 3lst May and the remaining 
one on 2nd June, on which date one of the females also 
appeared. The other female emerged the previous day. — 
MarGARET REESE, Flat 6, 2 All Saints Road, Clifton, Bristol, 
BS8 2JH, 11.viii.1980. 


A NORTHERN RECORD OF AETHES BEATRICELLA (WALS.). 
— A specimen of this moth was swept from vegetation on a 
stream bank at Waren Mill, Northumberland on 27th July 
1980. Bradley, Tremewan & Smith in British Tortricoid Moths, 
Vol. I give the distribution of this moth as “‘. . . locally com- 
mon in the southern and south-eastern countes of England, 
and apparently not found elsewhere . . .”. It is interesting to 
note that beatricella was recorded in 1976 from Derbyshire 
and Yorkshire, apparently for the first time (Harrison, F., 
Ent. Rec., 89: 208). — PAuL SOKOLOFF, Orpington, Kent. 


235 
Speculative Notes on the Kentish Glory 
By PETER MARRAN* 


If a prize were to be offered for Britain’s most desirable 
moth, surely Endromis versicolora, the Kentish Glory, would 
be on the short list. There can be few other moths which are 
both rare and beautiful, reside exclusively in magnificent sur- 
roundings, are as conspicuous as any butterfly and in addition 
possess the melancholy glamour of a sharply declining popula- 
tion. I have a special affection for this moth, since I live near 
one of its best remaining localities, and its appearance in the 
spring marks the onset of greenery in the birches and the 
end of the sometimes grim Highland winter. The loss of the 
Kentish Glory would be an entomological tragedy comparable 
to that of the Large Blue, but, so far as I am aware, the 
cause of its rapid decline remains unknown or attributed to 
‘climatic change”’ of an unspecified nature. However, I suggest 
that this decline may not be so very mysterious after all. 

The distribution of the Kentish Glory in Britain is a very 
curious one. The three main areas in which it has been 
recorded are the south eastern counties, the west Midlands 
and the central and north-eastern Highlands of Scotland. The 
latter is separated from the two former areas by at least 450 
kilometres, and this pattern of distribution has been attributed 
to a double colonisation (Ford, 1972). It is interesting that 
some other local birchwood moths such as the Scarce Promin- 
ent (Odontosia carmelita) and Silvery Arches (Polia hepatica) 
have a broadly similar south east England-Scottish Highlands 
distribution, although they also occur elsewhere. The Kentish 
Glory has declined markedly in England during the past 
century and it is now feared extinct, having vanished from all 
of its old haunts, one by one. This demise has sometimes been 
attributed to ‘climatic change” but unless specified further 
that is invariably just a synonym for “‘we don’t know’’. Over- 
collecting may have been a factor in some areas, and P. B. M. 
Allan (1943) cites Barton Mills in Suffolk as an example. As 
a strong assembling species, it may have been particularly 
susceptible since dealers and collectors could attract a large 
part of the local population of males by putting out freshly 
emerged virgin females. South’s statement on the well-known 
former colony at Tilgate Forest has an ominous ring: “It 
used to be so plentiful in Tilgate Forest, Sussex, that over a 
hundred males were brought to the net in one day by a bred 
female put down to allure them. This happened on April Sth, 
1858, and compares curiously with a record of one male 
attracted to a female in Tilgate Forest, April 13th, 1869”. 

However, collectors notoriously return to ‘localities’ rather 
than break new ground, and collecting, even at its most 
unscrupulous, must have been more than a local influence. 
The principal factor in the decline of most (though certainly 
not all) well-documented species is habitat destruction (other 


* 3, Ewan Place, Banchory, Kincardineshire. 


236 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 


factors may take part in the coup de grace of the last few 
colonies). Famous examples include the blue butterflies of 
chalk and limestone downs and the Swallowtail and Large 
Copper in the East Angian fens. The Kentish Glory inhabits 
open birchwoods and, in Scotland at least, prefers the young 
scrubby bushes and small trees characteristic of the new 
regeneration which follows felling or the cessation of burning 
and grazing on open moors. One tends to dismiss such scrub 
birch as a common and widespread habitat compared with, 
say, chalk downs or fens, as indeed it once was, But is this 
still necessarily true? Over much of lowland England scrub 
birch became widespread as the result of the heavy felling of 
high forest, particularly during the two world wars. Since 1945 
this economically near-worthless scrub has generally been 
cleared for land improvement, or planted up with conifers, 
with enhanced grant-aid schemes, and in parts of the country 
it has almost disappeared. Scrub birch is of course a serial 
stage in a natural succession leading ultimately to high forest 
of oak and other trees. Since scrub birch is therefore only a 
‘temporary’ habitat whose extent is largely determined by 
economic factors, one might expect a dependant insect like 
the Kentish Glory to show similarly fluctuating fortunes. 
This appears in fact to have happened. Moses Harris (1775) 
regarded his ‘Glory of Kent’ as a great rarity. An apparent 
increase in the first half of the nineteenth century (following 
the widespread felling of oak forests during the Napoleonic 
wars?) was followed by a decline in the twentieth century as 
Forestry Commission land purchases and grants resulted in 
the replacement of much of the potential Kentish Glory 
habitat with conifer plantations. The apparent gains and 
declines in the fortunes of the Kentish Glory are probably 
real ones, since it is one of the most conspicuous of our moths 
and is readily attracted to light or virgin bait. This implies 
that the probability of its complete extinction in England 
(unless entomologists are going around with their eyes — or 
mouths — determinedly shut) is also, alas, a real one. More 
the pity then, that there appear to be so few birchwood nature 
reserves in England, and that the Wyre Forest National Nature 
Reserve was declared too late to save the Kentish Glory in 
what was possibly its last English locality. 

In Scotland, the position is different, but equally curious. 
The Kentish Glory has not been seen at the famous locality 
of Rannoch for some years and, since there is still plenty of 
birch in that neighbourhood, one wonders whether this may 
be anothere site where there has been over-collecting. The 
main areas of the Kentish Glory are now the birch forest of 
Speyside and Deeside and even here it is distinctly local. It has 
declined at that other once-famous locality at Cleagellachie, 
Aviemore, since the mature birch wood there now is unsuit- 
able (and partly, I suspect, because the bright lights of the 
adjacent Aviemore centre may have attracted most of the 
male moths). On the other hand, it has been found quite 


SPECULATIVE NOTES ON THE KENTISH GLORY 237 


recently ina number of places in the Dee valley between 
Braemar and Banchory. One such area is a heather-covered 
plain which was once burned regularly for grouse and sheep, 
but is now being colonised by young birch forest and scrub 
since muirburn ceased in the 1950s. Within this area the 
Kentish Glory is (in some years at least) quite a common 
moth. In May 1979 I left a Robinson trap overnight in an 
open field in the general area, and was embarrassed to find 37 
male Kentish Glories sitting inside the next morning. The 
probable reason is that the area combines an abundance of 
the foodplant (Betula pendula —the moth is said to avoid 
B. pubescens) together with the open ground evidently needed 
by the males in their search for the relatively immobile 
females. They also seem to prefer twiggy bushes and small 
trees on which to lay their eggs, rather than the taller trees of 
mature woods. This combination of requirements is rarely 
found in the Highlands: because of over-grazing by the 
artificially large and free-ranging stocks of red deer, most 
Highland birchwoods consist of old or moribund trees with 
little or no regeneration. The type of habitat preferred by the 
Kentish Glory can therefore be found only in places where 
there are few deer or where they are excluded by fencing or 
adjacent plantations. I believe that this factor alone is suffi- 
cient to explain the localisation of the moth within its known 
range in the Scottish Highlands (its absence from western 
Scotland is probably due to climatic factors; the moth evidently 
favours only the drier, more continental parts of Britain). 
Invading birch scrub is of course a temporary stage between 
moorland and forest, but in natural forests its was probably 
self-maintaining in clearings and woodland edges. Unfortun- 
ately, with the present deer grazing levels (a fairly recent 
phenomenon) and the unparalled economic pressures to 
‘improve’ land, a degree of management is probably needed 
in order to maintain ideal ‘Kentish Glory country’ within 
the few places, such as nature reserves, where that is now 
possible. 

I believe that the other factor resulting in the decline of 
the Kentish Glory lies in the behaviour of the moth itself. 
The moth is admirably adapted to the birchwood habitat: 
the eggs are laid in small clutches below the leaf bud or fork 
in the twig and change colour within two days from the 
freshly-laid canary-yellow to a deep purple-brown which 
exactly matches that of the bark. The handsome larvae are 
similarly camouflaged, particularly in their final three instars, 
so much so that they are extremely difficult to find in the 
wild (more so even than the eggs!). The pupa, like many 
Highland species, has a built-in insurance against poor springs 
by which a proportion have delayed emergence for two or 
more years. It is a pleasant moth to rear, and not difficult, 
whether sleeved out of doors or on potted birch sprigs. The 
freshly emerged moth is a beautiful object indeed. Its Achilles 
heel appears to me to be the immobility of the females, which 


238 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 


are, even more so than pavonia, torpid egg-laying machines. 
They are poor fliers, unlke the males which cover considerable 
distances, and appear to have only brief periods of inactivity 
before, during and after egg-laying. This behaviour implies a 
poor ability to colonise new areas, which may account for 
the localisation of Kentish Glory colonies. This has already 
been noted in some of the hairstreak butterflies, particularly 
Strymonidia pruni. This is a potentially serious disability in a 
moth of essentially ephemeral and often fragmentary habit; it 
implies that it would be slow to spread into areas which 
become apparently suitable, and is compatible with what we 
know of its distribution. It also implies that introduction into 
apparently suitable areas could be a sensible course of action 
to conserve the moth, should all else fail. 

There seem to me to be at least two straightforward 
pieces of survey work which could be undertaken to gain a 
better idea of the past and present status of the Kentish Glory 
in Britain. The first would be a systematic search for it in 
Scotland, particularly in places such as the Moray Firth, the 
Findhorn valley and Easter Ross, parts of which are almost 
unexplored entomologically. The moth is probably under- 
recorded in the Highlands, though not, perhaps, by very 
much. The second would be to examine the forest history of 
a range of known former localities in England to see if there 
is some common factor, as I suspect there is, such as a 
change in forestry practice, which coincided with a decline in 
the recorded moth population. This might make a nice project 
for somebody. In the meantime, one can only speculate. 


Acknowledgements 
My grateful thanks to Bob Palmer and Mark Young who 
read and commented on the manuscript. 


References 
Allan, P. B. M., 1943. Talking of Moths. Newton, Montgomery. 
Ford, E. B., (3rd edn.) 1972, Moths Collins, London. 
Harris, Moses, 1775. The Aureliaons Pocket Companion. 

Heath J., (Ed.) 1973, The Provisional Atlas of the Insects of the 
British Isles. Part 2. Lepidoptera (moths) BRC, Monkswood. 
South, Richard, 1961. The Moths of the British Isles. New Edition. 1. 

Warne, London. 


ADDITION TO THE CANNA List. — On June 12th a fine 
large pale specimen of Acronycta leporina was found sitting 
on the external woodwork of a house here west of the harbour. 
The moth trap is not being worked during the short summer 
nights of May, June and July, owing to the cost of keeping 
the diesel generator plant running later than 11.30 p.m., but 
my impression is that moths have been scarcer during the 
past two or three years, possibly owing to the considerable 
increase in the number of small birds here since the new 
plantations were made — from observations by bird watchers 
insect larvae seem to be their main food. I am glad to say 
that the number of corncrakes heard this spring showed 
some increase. — J. L. CAMPBELL, Isle of Canna, Hebrides. 


239 
Crete 1979 


M. W. Cooper* and C. I RUTHERFORD** 


When the members of the Manchester Entomological 
Society assembled for their October meeting it came to light 
that two of us had holidayed in Crete during the season and 
both had butterfly exhibits from that island. Although we had 
each gone on holiday in search of sunshine and at fairly short 
notice, we had in fact managed to fit in a fair amount of 
butterfly collecting without allowing this pursuit to dominate 
the holiday. Our combined observations covered about 60% 
of the species known from the island and as they comp- 
lemented very well three articles in recent volumes of the 
Record it appeared to us worth putting our experience to- 
gether in one paper. 

Crete is dominated by harsh mountains rising out of the 
sea, stark evidence of its geological origins, for the island is a 
remnant of a block thrown up in the Tertiary episode. On 
the northern side Crete has several upland basins, the most 
notable of which is the arable Lassithi plain, an almost perfect 
stadium of 50 square miles ringed by mountains. The island 
supports a varied vegetation despite its demanding climate. 
Characteristic Mediterranean scrub dominates the landscape. 
Generally the Cretian flora is similar to that of the Pelopon- 
nese and Asia Minor, but the island is also noted for several 
native species and the quince (Cydonia oblonga) is said to 
be indigenous. 

May 3rd to 17th, C.1.R. The period of this stay fell 
nicely between the dates of Johnson’s visit from 7th to 14th 
April 1964 and Bretherton’s from Ist to 14th June 1969. We 
were located in a small beach hotel in the village of Karteros 
a few miles east of Heraklion and much of the collecting was 
done on some rough ground on the other side of the new 
trunk road. Here there is a dried up stream bed, though not 
so dry at this date that there were not still a few dragonflies 
about; the plants included thistles, thyme and scabious growing 
amongst rocks, plenty of rough grass and various low rather 
prickly shrubby plants. At the side of the new road, at the 
bottom of a twenty foot bank are a row of small trees appar- 
ently of the tamarisk group. 

In this area many butterflies were seen and examples of 
most were taken. Pieris rapae L., Maniola jurtina L., Coeno- 
nympha thyrsis Freyer and Thymelicus acteon Rott. were 
all very common throughout our stay; a few Hipparchia 
semele L. were seen near the trees on the first few days, most 
were males but the expcted increase in numbers with the 
addition of females did not occur. Pararge aegeria L. inhabited 
these trees fairly regularly while Polyommatus icarus Rott. 
and Colias crocea Geoff. (males only seen) were not uncom 
mon on the rough ground. In the environs of the hotel single 


* 104, Knutsford Road, Wilmslow, Cheshire. 
** Longridge, Macclesfield Road, Alderley Edge, Cheshire. 


240 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I1/X/80 


specimens were seen of Papilio machaon L., Pieris brassicae L., 
Gonepteryx cleopatra L., Vanessa cardui L. and Lycaena 
phlaeas L. but none of these were caught. In the last three 
days of our stay Philites baton Berg. appeared on the rough 
ground and both sexes were taken while at the very end of 
the holiday two specimens each of Lasiommata megera L. 
and Carcharodus alceae Esp. were taken. 

From the 7th to 13th we hired a small car and this 
enabled us to visit several other promising sites, though no 
attempt was made to cover the whole island, the western half 
was never visited and we did not get further east than Gournia, 
but we reached the south coast twice at Ierapetra and at 
Matala. The most attractive area we visited was undoubtedly 
the plateau of Lassithi which we approached from Agios 
Nikolaos at about mid-day on the 7th; one or two male G. 
cleopatra were seen among bushes not far from the main 
road but they soon disappeared when we stopped the car. 
On the way up we stopped near Potami where the road was 
lined with a mass of the broom Spartium junceum which 
grows so abundantly in those parts. Some “‘blues’’ were flying 
round the bushes and the first taken was a worn Lampides 
boeticus L., but all subsequent captures turned out to be 
Celastrina argiolus L.. At this point an odd Iphiclides poda- 
lirius L. was seen flying in the valley below but the highlight 
was when I was photographing some flowers my wife captured 
our first Allancastria cerisyi cretica Rebel, we took a second 
soon afterwards and saw a few others but they must have 
been well over at lower altitudes. A single ‘“‘blue’’ seen on 
some cultivated ground near the windmills was not taken but 
appeared to be P. icarus. We left the plateau by the north- 
western road and near Hersonnissou found an interesting 
collecting ground among the olives but it was too late in the 
evening for any butterflies to be about. We returned to this 
place a few days later and took two Euchloe ausonia Hb., 
seeing also C. crocea, P. aegeria and C. argiolus as well as 
some of the commoner species. 

Our trips were somewhat restricted by rather variable 
weather and when the English cup final was being played at 
Wembley in bright sunshine we were confined to the hotel by 
rain and not making the best use of the car. The road to 
Ierapetra does not climb as high as the other roads from 
north to south and at its modest summit was flanked by 
masses of sabious in bloom but disappointingly with very few 
butterflies. The beach east of Ierapetra was almost devoid of 
humans and excellent for swimming but also provided two 
Pontia daplidice L. caught flying over a grassy patch on the 
beach, a single P. machaon was seen here but not caught. On 
the way to Phaistos and Matala we stopped at the summit 
near Moulia where there was a good growth of sainfoin by 
the roadside, three 7. podalirius were taken here on scabious 
flowers but only one was worth keeping. Near the archaeolo- 
gical site of Aghia Triada there was a hillside of sainfoin over 


CRETE 1979 241 


which some small butterflies were flying very rapidly; I did 
eventually catch one which escaped through a hole in the net 
leaving behind a single forewing showing it to be L. boeticus; 
its flight was much wilder than that taken at Potami or those 
I have seen elsewhere. We planned to try the site again after 
lunch in Matala but heavy rain ruled that out. The only other 
oservation worth recording was that during a visit to the 
delightful village of Kritsa, several of the species seen else- 
where were seen again, but in addition a small dark Vanassid 
flying down the street might have been either Aglais urticae 
L. or Polygonia egea Cramer, I had no means of knowing 
which. 

July 25th to August 8th, M.W.C. This was later than 
other periods reported and fell in the hot dry summer; the 
coastal regions were pleasant due to the etesian winds from 
the north, whereas the unbroken drought of the interior left 
a dusty haze pervading the atmosphere. Initially I stayed 
outside Aghios Nikolaos, a small harbour town to the north- 
east. A few species of butterfly were seen in the area south 
of the town. P. machaon were common and larvae feeding on 
fennel were collected. J. podalilius was also observed but in 
smaller numbers. P. brassicae, P. rapae, P. daplidice, L. 
megera and P. icarus were also seen in this area. 

A trip to Ierapetra which is the only large town on the 
south coast produced a few specimens but these did include 
H. semele flying near the beach. The journey to Lassithi was 
much more successful, C. crocea, G. cleopatra and Venessa 
atalanta L. were recorded and P. egea was abundant in the 
late afternoon sun on the main road through Avrakontes. C. 
argiolus and P. aegeria were common on the peripheral road 
of Lassithi and specimens of L. boeticus were taken on the 
rought track leading to Karphi. Another interesting find at 
Lassithi were some particularly small specimens of C. alceae 
flying near the larger normal form. West of Aghios Nikolaos 
on the old road to Neapolis a few specimens of Leptidea 
sinapis L. were flying in a wooded area. The indigenous 
subspecies of the Small Heath Coenonympha pamphilus thyrsis 
Freyer (treated by some as a good species) was the most 
frequently observed butterfly being seen in all areas visited. 

A rather hurried tour of the western part of the island 
reevaled many promising collecting grounds which would 
almost certainly repay a longer visit, though perhaps a little 
earlier in the year. In the event most of the commoner species 
were seen again and the only one seen here but not elsewhere 
was the diminutive Freyeria trochylus Freyer which I was 
pleased to find inland of Rethymnon. This easily overlooked 
insect was found flitting along a stony path in the heat of 
the day. 

Discussion: A study of Higgins and Riley’s Field Guide 
indicates that 37 species of butterfly occur in Crete. Two of 
the three articles appearing in the Record in the last few 
years add six to this list; Johnson records Turanana panagea 
Rebel and Plebicula thersites Cant. while Higgins reports 


242 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/X/80 


Charaxes jasius L., Nymphalis polychloros L., Pandoriana 
pandora Schiff. and Quercusia quercus L. Finally, Hockin’s 
note appeared in the Record after our trips were completed 
and adds Gegenes pumilio Hoff. Neither of us saw any of 
these seven additional species nor did we add to the combined 
list of 44 species. 

In May C.I.R. recorded 22 species, just half the total; 
one of these, P. baton, was not recorded on any of the other 
three expeditions, its appearance towards the end of the 
holiday gave particular satisfaction and compensated to some 
extent for the failure to find any of the three really small 
blues. 

In July/August M.W.C. recorded 20 species which also 
included one, F. trochylus, not reported on any of the other 
three visits. Four of these 20 species were not among the 22 
recorded in May so that our overall total is 26 species. 

Neither of us was in the island at the right season for 
Kretana psylorita Freyer and we did not go in search of it; 
that neither of us saw Aricia agestis Schiff. was more surpris- 
ing. Our weakness seemed to be our failure to spot any of 
the “paired species’, for example Pieris ergane Geyer among 
the P. rapae, Pseudochazara anthelea Hb. among the H. 
semele, Hyponephele lupina Costa among the M. jurtina, 
Syntarucus pirithous L. among the L. boeticus or P. thersites 
among the P. icarus. Nevertheless we each came away well 
pleased with our first visit and resolved to go back as soon as 
possible. 

References 
Higgins, L. G., and Riley, N. D., 1970. A Field Guide to the Butterflies 
of Britain and Europe. Collins. 
Johnson, Major General, Sir G., 1964. Greece, April 1964. Ent. Rec., 

76: 187-189 
Bretherton, R. F., 1969. Notes on Butterflies (Rhopalocera) in Crete in 

June 1969. Ent. Rec., 81: 296-302. 

Higgins, L. G., 1973. Crete in late June 1973. Ent. Rec., 85: 291-293. 
Hockin, David C., 1979. Gegenes pumilio (Lep: Hesperiidae) A record 
for Crete Ent. Rec., 91: 194. 


CurtouS DISCOVERY CONCERNING THE DOTTED RUSTIC: 
RHYACIA SIMULANS HUFNAGEL. — Whilst on a visit to Layer 
Marney Tower near Colchester in Essex on 31st July 1980, 
I came across considerable numbers of dead specimens of 
the Dotted Rustic. Between 30 and 40 badly damaged and 
partially wingless moths were to be found on the window- 
sills of the Elizabethan tower and particularly on the floor 
of the church in the grounds nearby. The date of my visit 
would seem to fall in the period when this species is said to 
be aestivating, and so what disaster befell this local but sub- 
stantial emergence it would be interesting to discover. — J. N. 
p’arcy, Monkswell Cottage, Edington, Westbury, Wiltshire. 

THE VESTAL: RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. IN SURREY. — A 
fine male of this migrant was at my garden m.yv.]. here on 


13th August 1980. — K. G. W. Evans, 31 Havelock Road, 
Croydon, Surrey. 


243 


Records of some Non-Lepidopteran Insects from the 
New Forest Area 


By J. C. A. Cralk* 

During my recent residence in the New Forest region 
of Hampshire (1967-79), I specialised in a modest way in 
recording the Lepidoptera. However, I was consistently amazed 
at the richness of the insect fauna in general. Having little 
knowledge of the detailed classification of other orders, my 
attention was captured primarily by those species whose 
individuals are large or spectacular. This note records some 
of the more bizarre, scarce, or otherwise noteworthy which 
I came across. Nomenclature is that of Kloet and Hincks, ““A 
Check List of British Insects” 1945, except where otherwise 
stated (Tabanidae). 

HOMOPTERA 
Ledra aurita (Linn.). An individual of this species was found 
at rest during the daytime on a mist-net (erected for the 
capture and ringing of wild birds) under some oaks in my 
garden at Ashurst, Hampshire. Not referred to in any of the 
more popular illustrated field guides, it is large for a British 
homopteran (body length 15mm, wingspan 28mm) and of 
very striking appearance, having two large semi-circular 
plates which project almost vertically from the thorax. 
(Identified by British Museum.) 
Centrotus cornutus (Linn.). A member of this rare species 
was found during a B.E.N.H.S. meeting at Durlston Head, 
Dorset, on 10th June 1978. The thorax carries two lateral 
pointed projections and one long backward-pointing spine 
which is almost as long as the abdomen. These give the 
insect an impressively unusual shape and allow it, when at 
rest on a twig, to mimic a group of thorns. 

NEUROPTERA 
Raphidia notata Fabr. (Snakefly). A male and a female were 
found separately in my garden on 17th June 1979. Members 
of this uncommon genus have a remarkably elongated 
prothorax. 
Osmylus fulvicephalus (Scopoli). Adults of this large and 
beautiful alder-fly were observed on a few occasions in July 
1977 flying between the banks of New Forest streams in the 
shade of alder trees. 

COLEOPTERA 
Pterostichus madidus (Fabr.). A specimen of this carabid 
beetle was observed struggling on the surface of a stream 
in the New Forest on 22nd May 1977. Before it was swept 
away by the current, it was rescued and found to have a 
large worm emerging from its anus. This was identified as 
Parachordodes_ wolterstorffii (Camerano) (Nematomorpha, 
Gordioidea). It was placed in a glass tube and, after a few 
minutes, the worm emerged completely from the beetle. After 
setting and drying, the worm measured 92mm in length and 


* Marine Laboratory, P.O. Box 3, Oban, Argyll. 


244 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/X/80 


about Imm in width; the beetle was 16mm long. Parachor- 
dodes has two host species in its life cycle. Initially it infects 
the larvae of certain insects, particularly chironomids. These 
larvae are then eaten by the secondary host, in which the 
parasite grows for several weeks or months until it is almost 
mature. Emergence occurs when the host is near water (so 
that the eggs may be deposited therein), and it is presumably 
this emergence which I witnessed. The free-living adult phase 
of the life cycle is spent in water, and sexual maturity is 
attained very soon after emergence from the secondary host, 
which is usually a beetle, cockroach, cricket or grasshopper. 
(Both species were identified by the British Museum (Nat. 
Hist. )) 

Dytiscus marginalis (Linn.). An adult female of this large water 
beetle was caught in my moth trap on 6th July 1979. The 
larvae are common in neighbouring garden ponds and, if 
goldfish are kept, are destroyed as dangerous predators. An 
adult male D. semisulcatus Mueller was brought to me by a 
neighbour from his pond. 

Lucanus cervus (Linn.). Four adult stag beetles were 
encountered during this period, all in June. Two males were 
(separately) seen in the course of their ungainly crepuscular 
flight, while one male was found crawling across a tarmac 
road at midday. My wife saw a female as it was walking 
across a pavement in Ashurst in the daytime. Before she could 
pick it up, an irate woman pedestrian stamped it to death, 
muttering righteously to her small child, ““Look at that dirty, 
disgusting creature’. 

Prionus coriarius (Linn.). This large longhorn beetle almost 
rivals the stag beetle in size and splendour. Two specimens 
were caught, on IIlth August 1978 and 8th August 1979, both 
severely entangled in mist-nets in the garden. It was a lengthy 
and difficult operation to extract them intact and without 
being bitten by their large powerful mandibles. 


HYMENOPTERA 
Urocerus gigas (Linn.). An exceptionally large female Giant 
Woodwasp (length including ovipositor 45mm, wingspan 
60mm) was caught in a warehouse in Eastleigh, Hampshire 
in August 1978. Another female, caught in Devon in 1974, 
had 30 and 43mm respectively as these measurements, 
illustrating the considerable variation in size that is so 
characteristic of the adults of woodboring/woodeating insects. 
Vespa crabro (Linn.). The hornet is a fairly common species 
in the New Forest area. The adults are apparently active both 
by day and by night, being regular visitors to light-traps and 
occasionally appearing at lighted windows at night, In 1978, 
353 hornets were trapped in the Robinson 125-watt moth trap 
in my garden, including 2 queens and 14 drones. Workers 
continued to be caught until 5th November. Two aspects of 
their appearance in moth traps are worthy of mention.Hornets 
caught in a moth trap may kill or mutilate numbers of moths, 
often neatly severing all four wings and separating the 


SOME NON-LEPIDOPTERAN INSECTS—NEW FOREST AREA 245 


abdomen from the thorax. In 1978, moths of 29 species 
were attacked in this way, 72 individuals being killed and a 
further 4 mutilated but left alive. The hornets trapped on any 
particular night usually appeared exhausted in the morning. 
Many became incapable of flight if they were not released 
before about midday, and all died if not released by evening. 
It was suggested to me by Colin Pratt that this phenomenon 
might be due to dehydration. In 1979, I carried out a prelimin- 
ary test of this hypothesis by placing a shallow dish of water 
in the trap one evening. Only three hornets were caught that 
night; two were unable to fly the next morning, while one 
just managed to fly away. Thus the presence of water did not 
alleviate the condition. Possibly the apparent exhaustion and 
death are caused by the body temperature falling below that 
of the nest and below that maintained by normal activity. 
Enforced idleness in the trap might allow the hornets’ tem- 
perature to fall to that of the environment during the night. 
Hornets would normally be unaccustomed to such cooling. 
(It is well known that flight muscles of large moths are 
maintained at a temperature above that of the environment 
during flight.) Other possible explanations are that the hornets 
may have been poisoned by having eaten certain moths, or 
that they may be dependent upon a pheromone originating 
from the queen or from the nest. 


DIPTERA 
Ctenophora ornata (Meigen). A male of this very rare 
Tipulid fly came to my portable (Heath) m.v. light trap at 
Woosons Hill, New Forest, at 2 a.m. on 26th July 1979. This 
species provides a classic example of aposematic (warning) 
colouration, having its abdomen strikingly banded in yellow, 
orange, brown and black. (Identified by British Museum.) 


Tabanidae (Identification and nomenclature from R.E.S. 
Handbook for the Identification of British Insects, vol. IX, 
part 4.) 

Tabanus sudeticus (Vetrall) and T. bovinus (Linn.). Consider- 
able numbers of these impressively large bloodsucking species 
(length 22-24mm, wingspan 44-47mm, from 7 set specimens) 
were caught in Ashurst Hospital (a geriatric hospital) in July 
and August of 1978 and 1979. Together with larger numbers 
of other smaller species of Tabanidae, they were observed to 
be feeding on the blood of the elderly residents of the hospital. 
(Possibly this was not their only source of food, since there 
were cattle and ponies in nearby fiields.) Many specimens 
came into my possession, as my wife worked in the hospital 
during this period and assisted in spraying operations to 
control the flies. Reports suggested that the appearance of the 
flies in sufficient numbers to cause a nuisance was an annual 
event. The following species were identified from specimens 
found inside the hospital wards: Chrysops pictus (Meigen), 
Hybomitra distinguenda (Verrall), Atylotus fulvus (Meigen), 
Tabanus sudeticus (Verrall), T. bovinus (Linn.), T. miki 
(Brauer), T. bromius (Linn.). In addition to this rich source 


246 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 


of Tabanids, the following were caught in the conservatory 
attached to my house at Ashurst: Chrysops caecutiens (Linn.) 
(1 specimen) and Tabanus autumnalis (Linn.) (3 specimens). 
Volucella zonaria (Poda). This large hoverfly species provides 
another good example of warning colouration, having black 
and yellow bands on the abdomen which give it a wasp-like 
appearance. Three individuals were collected in this period, 
all in or near Southampton, including one which was brought 
to me in a matchbox by a friend who was convinced that it 
was capable of stinging him. Another interesting example of 
the efficiency of this mimicry of bees and wasps by hoverflies 
was seen recently in an advertisement, shown many times on 
television, which encouraged viewers to save with a particular 
building society or bank (I forget which). It purported to 
show a bee on a flower, industriously collecting and saving 
nectar and pollen. In fact, unknown to the creators of the 
advertisement, the picture was not of a bee, but of a rather 
less exemplary hoverfly. However, most of the viewers were 
doubtless also deceived. 


HIPPOBOSCIDAE 

Hippoboscidae (Specialised bloodsucking dipteran parasites 
of birds and mammals.) 
The Forest Fly, Hippobosca equina (Linn.), was observed 
frequently on New Forest ponies in July and August, and 
could be obtained by sweeping the ground vegetation in 
infested areas (or picked from our dog after walking in such 
areas). Of the avian parasites, Ornithomyia avicularia (Linn.) 
was frequently observed during bird-ringing operations in 
summer; it was found on a wide range of species, including 
Green Woodpecker, Tawny Owl and Blackcap. The more 
highly specialised, flightless Stenepteryx hirundinis (Linn.) was 
obtained from House Martins on several occasions. These 
parasites of birds are mentioned here because, although com- 
mon and widespread, they are unlikely to be encountered by 
the entomologist unless he or she handles wild birds or collects 
from birds’ nests. 


THE CLOUDED YELLOW: COLIAS CROCEUS GEOF. IN 
CORNWALL. — On 27th August 1980, while walking behind 
the cliff-tops at Landsend, I disturbed into flight a number 
of these butterflies which were lying low in dull weather 
conditions. —- BRIAN CHESNEY, 83, Tylecroft Road, Norbury, 
London SWI16 4BJ. 


THE WHITE-SPECK WAINSCOT: MYTHIMNA ALBIPUNCTA 
D. & S. IN HAMPSHIRE. — The autumn of 1980 has been very 
poor for migrant lepidoptera, with even the commoner migrant 
species appearing in very small numbers. It was therefore a 
pleasant surprise when I took a specimen of albipuncta at 
m.v. at Southsea on 23rd September. — Dr. J. R. LANGMAID, 
38, Cumberland Court, Festing Road, Southsea, Hants. 


247 
Notes on some East Anglian Beetles 


By Roy Cross_Ley, F.R.E.S.* 


During a brief touring holiday in East Anglia with my 
wife in June 1976, the opportunity was taken to collect insects 
at a number of localities. On 9th June I was able to examine 
the basin of a small dried out pond at the edge of a copse 
between Thetford and Attleborough and the following beetles 
were found, chiefly underneath matted algae, old motor tyres 
and small pieces of wood: Dyschirius luedersi Wag., Bembi- 
dion assimile Gyll., B. doris (Panz.), Pterostichus strenuus 
(Panz.), Amara plebeja (Gyll.), Stenolophus mixtus (Herbst), 
Acupalpus consputus (Duft.), Platystethus cornutus (Grav.), 
P. nitens (Sahlb.), P. nodifrons (Mann.), Stenus boops Ljungh, 
S. canaliculatus Gyll., S. formicetorum Mann. 

On the following day we visited Salthouse on the north 
Norfolk coast and for about an hour we searched the edge of 
a salt marsh and a shallow creek just behind the sea bank. 
Here we found Bembidion ephippium (Marsh.) in abundance 
and also B. varium (Ol.) and B. minimum (Fab.). It was by the 
side of the shallow creek that I found the three British 
Pogonus species. Both P. chalceus Marsh. and P. littoralis 
Duft. were taken but as I did not separate the two species 
until I had mounted them at home I do not know in what 
relative proportion they occurred. I took five specimens in all, 
assuming them to be chalceus but on examination three proved 
to be littoralis. A single female P. luridipennis Germ. was 
taken but no more were seen. I understand from Mr. D. R. 
Nash (in litt.) that this species was first discovered in Britain 
at Salthouse by Rev. J. Burrell in 1806 and according to 
records so far received by Dr. M. L. Luff in connection with 
the Carabidae Mapping Scheme there are only five other 
10 Km. squares from which the species has recently been 
recorded, all of them being in eastern and southern England. 
P. littoralis is slightly more widespread with a similar distribu- 
tion pattern, being recorded from thirteen 10 Km. squares in 
all (M. L. Luff, in Jitt.). 

That evening we were at Burnham Overy Staithe and 
walking along the sea wall we saw many specimens of 
Malachius barnevillei Puton on flower heads. As I did not 
know which species of Malachius they were but felt that I 
should take some for the record, and not having any tubes 
with me, my wife kindly obliged by emptying the money out 
of her purse into my pocket and carried a few specimens back 
to the car safely locked up in her handbag! It was only later 
that I realised we had stumbled across one of the Norfolk 
specialities swarming by the side of a public path. 

At the beginning of June 1977 I paid a further brief visit 
to East Anglia and amongst the beetles collected on that 
occasion it is perhaps worth recording Bembidion nigricorne 
Gyll. at Roydon Common near King’s Lynn, Silpha laevigata 


* 46, St. David’s Road, Otley, West Yorkshire, LS21 2AW. 


248 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD 1/X/80 


Fab. at Santon Downham near Thetford, and Bledius unicornis 
(Germ.) and B. spectabilis Kraatz at Burham Overy Staithe. 

Mr. D. R. Nash suggested that I should prepare this note 
after seeing the species lists which I compiled following my 
visits to Suffolk and Norfolk, and it is a pleasure to record 
my thanks to him for much advice. Drs. A. G. Irwin and M. L. 
Luff supplied information on the records of Pogonus species 
and I am obliged to both gentlemen. I am also obliged to 
Mr. C. Johnson for assistance with the determination of the 
Staphilinidae, and Mr. J. H. Flint kindly identified Silpha 
laevigata and confirmed my identification of Malachius 
barnevillei. 


THE VESTAL: RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. AND OTHER LEPI- 
DOPTERA AT TONBRIDGE. — On the night of August Ist 1980, 
I was fortunate to take a male Vestal in my Robinson m.v. 
trap operating in my garden. In view of the limitations of 
the suburban environment the recording of one Scarce Promi- 
nent (Odontosia carmelita Esp.) on 13th May 1979 and an 
occasional Alder Moth (Acronicta alni L.) are perhaps also 
worthy of note. — A. E. Tapp, 48, Hunt Road, Tonbridge, 
Kent. 

OULIMNIUS MAJOR (REY) (= O. FALCIFER BERTHELEMY) 
(CoL.: ELMIDAE) NEw TO Britain. — I have to report that I 
found three examples of this species, hitherto unrecorded in 
Britain, in a tributary of the River Severn, on the 30th June 
1980. Mr. Peter Hammond (Br. Mus. Nat. Hist.), to whom 
I sent a drawing of the aedeagus, kindly agreed with the 
determination. The specimens were accompanied by several 
Oulimnius troglodytes (Gyllenhal), itself a rare species worthy 
of note. A paper on this introduction to the British List will 
follow in due course. — JoHN A. Parry, 38, Heather Drive, 
St. Michaels, Tenterden, Kent. 

THE RETURN OF THE ORANGE Tip. — On 27th June 1979 
I netted a very tattered female A. cardamines at Balinluig, 
O.S. 27/95. 1980 has confirmed that the species is established 
in this area, as it is also, south of Loch Tummel, O.S. 27/85. 
— J. R. MI.er, Sealladh-Mhor, Crieff, Perthshire. 

SCROBIPALPA OCELLATELLA (BOYD) (LEP.: GELECHIIDAE) 
ON CULTIVATED BEET.— On 22.iii.1980, I collected some larvae 
of S. ocellatella feeding on Beta maritima at Plymouth. Since 
I had collected insufficient foodplant, I later offered them the 
leaves of cultivated spinach beet, which they ate readily, and 
from which normal adults eventually emerged. — P. J. 
JOHNSON, 7 Haverhill Road, Horseheath, Cambridge, CB1 6QR. 

PLATYPTILIA ISODACTYLUS ZELLER IN STAFFORDSHIRE. — 
A single P. isodactylus was taken flying at dusk among Senecio 
aquaticus at Aqualate, Staffordshire, on 16th August 1980. 
There seem to be no records of this species from the Midlands, 
but it may be worth looking for in undrained meadows, now 
unfortunately a scarce and diminishing habitat. R. G. 
ce Wood Ridings, 32 Whitmore Road, Trentham, Stoke- 
on-Trent. 


249 


Pontania crassipes (Thomson) (Hym., Tenthredini- 
dae) new to Wester Ross and comments on its local 
distribution 


By ANDREW D. LISTON* 


During a hill-walking and climbing trip to Kintail, Wester 
Ross, I had ample opportunity to search for signs of Pontania 
crassipes (Thomson) on a number of summits. Sheet 33 of the 
1:50,000 Ordnance Survey Map series shows all the localities 
mentioned below. 


Observations made in 1980 

The summit of A’Chralaig (1,120m.), climbed on the Ist 
of April, was unfortunately, from an entomological point of 
view, too icy to allow an investigation of its vegetation. This 
is the highest in the district, however, and the tops of the 
other hills mostly proved to have a covering of softer snow. 
On the following day the ridge to the south of Cluanie Inn 
was walked. Numbers of old crassipes galls were found on 
dried leaves of Salix herbacea L. which was growing on north- 
facing crags on Creag a’ Mhaim and along the whole length 
of the ridge between Creag a’ Mhaim (947m.) and Druim 
Shionnach (987m.). Associated vegetation on the rocky out- 
crops on the ridge where S. herbacea was found contained 
Alchemilla alpina agg., Lycopodium sp., Vaccinium myrtillus, 
and the dwarf shrubs Arcotostaphylos uva-ursi and Empetrum 
nigrum. The galls were of the typical form: projecting almost 
equally above and below the leaf-blade, positioned at its base 
and to one side of the midrib, which it touches. The emerg- 
ence hole of the mature larva may be either on the upper or 
lower surface of the gall. It leaves to build its cocoon in the 
soil. As in the gall figured by Benes (1968: 121, fig. 10a), 
the distortion of the leaf was marked. On the descent from 
Druim Shionnach, galls were found as low as 600 metres 
(above Loch a’ Mhaoil Dhisnich, in soil-filled cracks and 
ledges on boulders). 

Despite careful search, on the 4th of April I failed to find 
any galls on the south-facing slopes of the Five Sisters. It 
became clear to me that topography is a key factor in the 
distribution of this insect on the Scottish mountains. The 
host plant, and therefore the sawfly also, do not appear to 
occur widely on the slopes that are exposed to the south. 
Visible evidence of the effect of the longer exposure to sun- 
light that the southern slopes are subjected to was strikingly 
obvious from the amount of snow lying on the north-facing 
and south-facing sides of the same hill. At the time when I 
was in the area, the north-facing slope of the Saddle (1,010m.) 
was thickly and fairly evenly covered in snow down to about 
700 metres. By contrast, the south-facing side, even near the 
summit ridge, had only a few small snow patches. Galls of 
P. crassipes were found on the craggy north-facing side of 
*99 Clermiston Road, Edinburgh, EH12 6UU. 


250 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I1/X/80 


Coire Uaine nearly down to the level of the Loch a’ Coire 
Uaine. It would seem that in Britain, where we have moun- 
tains only just high enough to support populations of crassipes, 
local climatic differences affect its distribution profoundly. 

Benson (1958: 203) records crassipes from the arctic- 
alpine zones of the “mountains in the Lake District, in Snow- 
donia, in the Grampians, on Ben Laoghal in Sutherland and 
on the Island of Rhum’’. This is its distribution on Salix 
herbacea. He added (Benson, 1959) a record from Salix 
myrsinites L. at Inchnadampf NNR, Sutherland. I do not 
know of any previous published records from Wester Ross. 
Benson collected on Slioch, by Loch Maree, but does not 
mention having found crassipes there: I regard the fact that 
Benson collected on the south-facing side of Slioch as signifi- 
cant. Apart from Salix herbacea and S. myrsinites, crassipes 
is also found on S. arbuscula L. and S. lapponum L. in Britain. 

A few other insects were observed during my visit. The 
first Dolerus aeneus Hartig (Hym., Tenthr.) were flying in 
sheltered spots at sea-level. These were all males and had 
probably just emerged. Galls of Euura atra (Tenthr.) and 
Rhabdophaga salicis (Dipt., Cecidomyiidae) occurred together 
in stems of Salix atrocinerea Brot. at Shiel Bridge. On the 
evening of 3lst March, a Sword Grass moth dived into my 
hair in a wild attempt to evade a bat that was chasing it (I 
would that all insects were so obliging! ). One nymph of 
Tetrix undulata (Sowerby) (Orthoptera, Tetrigidae), a local 
species in Scotland, was found on the beach at the head of 
Loch Duich. While walking to the Saddle, a male Meloe 
violaceus Marsham was taken. It was resting on a sandy 
footpath at the head of the Allt a’ Coire Uaine (500m.). 

Acknowledgements 

I must thank my companions, Messrs, A. Forsyth, Q. 
Laidlaw and A. Leslie, for their tolerance at having to sit 
around on exposed ridges in what were not always pleasant 
conditions while I searched for specimens. Dr. K. Benes, 
Praha, kindly sent me a very generous selection of reprints of 
his papers. 

References 

Benes, K., 1968. Galls and Larvae of the European Species of Genera 

Phyllocolpa and Pontania (Hymenoptera, Tenthredinidae). Acta ent. 

bohemoslow., 65: 112-137. 
Benson, R. B., 1958. Hymenoptera Symphyta, part 2(c). Handb. Ident. 

Br. Insects, 6: 139-252. 


Benson, R. B., 1959. Sawflies (Hym., Symphyta) of Sutherland and 
Wester Ross. Entomologist’s mon. Mag., 95: 101-104. 


A THIRD SPECIMEN OF RHYACIA SIMULANS (HUEN.) IN 
Kent. — A worn speciment of this noctuid was taken in my 
garden trap on the night of 14th September 1980, the third 
record of this species for Kent. It is interesting that both the 
other specimens have occurred within the last two years — 
the first near Faversham (Watkinson, Ent. Rec., 90: 324), 
and the second at Wilmington (Butcher, Ent. Rec., 91: 316. 
— PauL SOKOLOFF, Orpington, Kent. 


| 


251 


On the Feeding Habits of Thereva nobilitata F. 
(Diptera: Therevidae) 


By Y. Z. ERZINCLIOGLU* 


The feeding habits of the adults of the dipterous family 
Therevidae have been the subject of much speculation, but 
the family has generally been regarded as being predatory 
upon other insects. However, as Oldroyd (1969) pointed out, 
there are no records in the literature of Therevids preying 
on anything. Furthermore, as Oldroyd goes on to explain, the 
structure of the mouthparts of Therevidae do not seem to 
be adapted to a predatory habit; they are not modified into 
piercing organs as in the closely related family Asilidae nor 
are the labella supplied with the chitinous interlocking teeth 
found in species of the predatory family Dolichopodidae. 
Oldroyd concluded, therefore, that Therevids probably suck 
fluids for nourishment in the manner of Syrphid and Calyp- 
terate flies, whose mouthparts most closely resemble those of 
the Therevidae. Another feature of the Therevidae that seems 
to indicate a non-predatory habit is the relative smallness 
of their eyes when compared with those of the predatory 
Asilidae. 

It was with some interest, therefore, that I collected a 
female specimen of Thereva nobilitata F. from a rabbit corpse 
in Harrogate on 2nd July 1980. Of course, it cannot be said 
for certain that the fly was actually feeding on the carrion, 
but the fact that the corpse was placed under a trap is 
suggestive, because there seems to be no reason why the fly 
should have entered the trap if it were not attracted by the 
odour of the carrion. In my experience, only specifically 
carrion flies enter this trap, while other species do not, how- 
ever abundant they may be in the vicinity. The only reference 
that I could find in the literature to a Therevid on carrion 
was the collection of an undetermined species of Thereva 
from a rabbit corpse at the Juniper Hall Field Centre, 
Dorking, in July 1951 (Chapman & Sankey, 1955). 

Although the above observation offers no conclusive 
proof of carrion-feeding in Therevidae, it is perhaps worth 
recording in view of the paucity of information on the subject. 

References 
Chapman, R. F., & Sankey, J. H. P. 1955. The larger invertebrate 
fauna of three rabbit carcasses. J. anim. Ecol. 24 (2): 395-402. 


Oldroyd, H., 1969. Tabanoidea and Asiloidea. Handbks Ident. Br. 
Insects Vol. IX Part 4. Royal Entomological Society of London. 


* 257 Woodfield Road, Harrogate, Yorkshire. 


PLUSIA GAMMA L. AND NOMOPHILA NOCTUELLA D. & S. IN 
S. Devon. — P. gamma numbers in the m.v. trap from 7th 
June to 16th September were : June (20 nights), 35, July 
(23) 19, August (22) 158, September (11) 15. Total = 227. 
N. noctuella numbers were: June 23, July 12, August 76, 
September 6. Total = 117. — H. L. O’HEFFERNAN, Chillington, 
Kingsbridge, S. Devon. 


252 
What is a British Moth? 
By A. A. ALLEN* 


In recent issue of the Proc. Brit. Ent. Nat. Hist. Soc. 
(March 1980, p. 57), it is stated in the report of a meeting 
of the Society that the Ministry of Agriculture had begun 
publishing lists of moths intercepted by Customs officials in 
cargoes, etc., in 1976-77, and that a similar list for 1978 was 
expected; and that Mr. R. F. Bretherton, the author of the 
communication, was considering the need to include these in 
the list of British Lepidoptera. 

There is no question, of course, that the publication of 
such lists, whereby they become available to our lepidopterists 
and collectors, is a welcome step. But it seems to me that 
before any final decision on the above proposal is made, more 
thought should be given to the desirability (?) of granting 
British status to a host of obviously exotic species having 
nothing to do with our fauna properly speaking. For my part 
I cannot think that the indiscriminate inclusion of such species 
as British serves any good or useful purpose. If they are to 
be admitted to our lists at all, they should, in my opinion, be 
kept apart — e.g., relegated to an appendix of imported 
species, as I believe used often to be done. In the body of the 
list, mingling with the genuine “‘Britishers”, they are an 
intrusive irrelevance. In these days of ever-increasing inter- 
national traffic, this class if admitted can only continue to 
swell and clutter up our faunal lists to a degree ultimately 
intolerable. 

I need hardly add that such considerations apply solely 
to species not known to breed in this country in a state of 
nature. As soon as any of them are found to do so, such 
species merge with and become in effect part of the wild 
fauna, thereby earning their right to full British “‘nationality”’. 

A fauna consists basically of three elements: natives or 
indigenes, established aliens, and spontaneous immigrants. Of 
course there will always be species of uncertain status, whose 
entitlement to be treated as members of the fauna must 
remain doubtful. Such may legitimately be given the benefit 
of the doubt; provided, however, that what is known of the 
insect’s natural range and habits does not suggest that the 
occurrence in question is likely to remain unique or nearly 
so, and that the probability of its being due to introduction, 
whether accidental or deliberate, is overwhelming. 

Naturally, these borderline cases will be most numerous 
in an Order such as the Lepidoptera, where so many species 
are migratory in varying degrees. Yet I do not think that 
the problem of what to do with them justifies the policy of 
including everything right across the board. It is manifestly 
impossible to exclude all arbitrary procedures in what is, 
after all, a compromise between convenience and an attempt 


* 49 Montcalm Road, Charlton, London, SE7 8QG. 


WHAT IS A BRITISH MOTH? 253 
to represent the actual state of affairs. The principles outlined 
here are equally applicable to other Orders (cf. Allen, 1964, 
Ent. mon. Mag., 100: 278). The question. I think, merits 
wider discussion. 


SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE SCARCE CHOCOLATE TIP: 
CLOSTERA ANACHORETA D. & S. — Following the capture at 
Dungeness, Kent of two immigrant (?) specimens of Clostera 
anachoreta D. & S., Scarce Chocolate Tip (one in 1974 by 
W. L. Coster, and one in 1978 by E. H. Wild) considerable 
hopes were aroused that the insect might possibly breed in 
the area. 

Many individual searches were made culminating in the 
British Entomological and Natural History Society Field 
Meeting on the site on 29th September, 1979. By the end of 
the year a number of imagines and larvae had been discovered 
resulting in a considerable quantity of moths being reared 
and bred therefrom. 

I was fortunate in finding six larvae on sallow which 
were reared without difficulty for the cabinet. Later, I was 
indebted to Mr. Richard Fairclough who gave me a batch of 
some 40 ova from his successful breeding. All produced perfect 
insects with prompt pairings and resultant ova. Breeding 
these on through two further generations resulted in a huge 
quantity of larvae taking a great deal of time and energy to 
feed and maintain in first rate hygienic conditions. 

My idea in rearing so many insects was to return them 
to Dungeness in the hope that this attractive species will make 
a substantial lodgement that will persist despite the vagaries 
of our climate; such as has been achieved by Calophasia 
lunula Hufn. Toadflax Brocade on the same site. On 6th 
Sept. 1980 I made a special trip to Dungeness and deposited 
on the sallows between 8,000 and 10,000 second and third 
instar larvae. This by itself was a most tedious undertaking 
but at last my home was restored to some normality. 

The moth seems to be particularly constant and free 
from any substantial aberrational tendencies so that I imagine 
a short series will suffice for most collectors. Let me, therefore, 
appeal to others to release any surplus insects from their 
breeding stocks on the original site to give the species as 
much chance as possible to gain a firm foothold. Perhaps the 
most damaging prospect will be the hymenopterous parasites 
which attack the young larvae of Euproctis chrysorrhoea L., 
Brown-Tail Moth and Leucoma salicis L., White Satin Moth, 
both of which feed on sallow and which, in the early stage, 
bear some resemblance to anachoreta. If this plea is heeded 
and we are successful then we may well benefit in another 
way. I continue to smart, as do many of us, from well-meaning 
but ill-informed criticism of the collector entomologist to the 
effect that we are despoilers and not protectors of animal life. 
It would be nice to nail the lie by pointing to a successful 
conservation by “‘collectors”. — K .G. W. Evans, 31 Havelock 
Road, Croydon, Surrey CRO 6QQ, 7.ix.1980. 


254 


The White-letter Hairstreak: Strymonidia w-album 
Knoch 


By A. ARCHER-LOCK* 


Following the apparent extinction of the Large Blue in 
England during 1979, one wonders whether this hairstreak 
will be the next on the list? All my contacts suggest a drastic 
decline or complete disappearance even from several of those 
localities renowned for an abundance of the species. 

Somewhat ironically, for so many of the earlier recog- 
nised authorities have declared the butterfly to be absent 
from Cornwall, I found a colony in the west of that county 
during 1980. Other colonies have of course existed in Cornwall, 
Mr. John Heath having seen it near Falmouth some years 
ago, while, until recently, another quite strong colony survived 
near Bodmin upon wych elms beneath which the china clay 
trains rumbled. 

The new discovery, which followed a sighting elsewhere 
of one specimen on bramble, and which lacked the white “W’, 
is based on a wych elm still fortunately free of disease. High 
above the murmuring millstream the butterflies feed on the 
honeydew-coated leaves of the surrounding alders and ash 
trees, seldom resorting to their birthplace except for courtship. 
Although these trees adjoin a natural rough meadow richly 
endowed with knapweed, hogweed, thistles, and bramble 
blossom, all of which are available within a few paces of the 
trees, the butterflies choose to stay as high as possible whatever 
the weather, occasionally a pair spiralling skywards before 
separating to dart back to the foliage. 

This same reluctance to come down to blossoms was 
true of two colonies close to Plymouth, both now sadly ex- 
tinguished. In one case, some fine privet bushes stood within 
twenty feet of the wych elm but were ignored day after day, 
as indeed was an abundance of bramble most invitingly on 
display at close quarters. Perhaps this is a West Country 
characteristic of the species, for one reads and hears of 
frequent visits to these favourite blooms elsewhere. 

My own experience is that a colony either deserts or 
fails to breed on a tree well before elm disease has substantially 
destroyed it. Certainly the butterfly wanders, for one was 
found by a son of mine on a busy city centre pavement in 
Plymouth, and another in the centre of Bath. But one never 
hears of proved cases of newly colonised trees. 

These comments are really offered in the nature of a 
short inquiry, upon which, if readers with recent experience 
would care to comment, such views and experience would be 
appreciated. A synopsis of these results would be forwarded 
to the Editor. 

1. Does anyone know of a really thriving colony of 
Strymonidia w-album still in existence? (the county would 
be interesting). 


* 4, Glenwood Road, Mannamead, Plymouth, S. Devon PL3 5NH. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 255 


2. Has anyone come across new colonisation? 

3. Is elm disease the over-riding factor for decline, or 
are others suggested by evidence? (i.e. trees still surviving). 

4. Has anyone actual proof that the species has bred 
successfully in the wild on elm other than wych elm? 


Notes and Observations 


PARTHENOGENESIS. — In reply to M. J. Symes’ note (Ent. 
Rec. 92: 52-53), parthenogenesis would seem to be responsible 
from the eggs produced from his female of Selenia bilunaria. 
He is right in assuming that the ova were almost certainly 
diploid, but this does not mean that all offspring are necessarily 
genetically identical. Many Psychidae have been shown to 
undergo automictic (meiotic) parthenogenesis, in which a 
normal reduction division occurs, but two of the (haploid) 
nuclei then fuse to restore the diploid number of chromosomes. 
This process is clearly comparable with the fusion of two 
gametes from different individuals, and will produce genetic 
variation amongst the offspring, since the reduction nuclei 
from a single organism are not all identical. 

The sudden death of the larvae may also be attributable 
to parthenogenesis.In the first instar larvae of the locust 
Schistocerca, mortality is very high when they have been 
produced parthenogenetically. It seems that, in general, viability 
is much lower when parthenogenesis occurs. It is probably 
for this reason that the phenomenon is fairly rare: it is only 
likely to occur in those species living in relatively patchy 
habitats, the only situation in which it is of possible advantage, 
since it then allows rapid colonization of a new patch following 
invasion by a single individual. Furthermore, a patchy environ- 
ment makes finding a mate difficult, so adding to the advantage 
of parthenogenesis. Reference: R. F. Chapman, 1971. The 
Insects, second edition. — P. J. JOHNSON, 7, Haverhill Road, 
Horseheath, Cambridge, CB1 6QR. 

UNusuAL BEHAVIOUR OF MOMPHA NODICOLELLA FUCHS 
(LEp.: MOMPHIDAE). — During the afternoon of Ist August 
1980, I observed about a dozen small moths of the family 
Momphidae at St. Mary Magdalene Churchyard Museum 
Nature Reserve, London, E.6, engaging in a rather curious 
activity, which I have not previously observed. The moths 
were all upon the vertical, west facing surface of a limestone 
grave-stone, which was much weathered and extremely eroded 
in most parts. The air-temperature was approximately 22°C, 
and the sun shone directly onto the west face of the stone, 
and hence upon the moths. 

Each of the moths was engaged in what I have called 
‘spiralling’: that is, turning around by the motion of their 
legs in a tight circle, but with their heads remaining fixed so 
that the distal tip of the abdomen described an arc of 360 
degrees around the head. I watched this behaviour for about 


256 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/X/80 


20 minutes, during which time I observed with the aid of a 
hand lens that no part of the head was in contact with the 
surface of the stone. The movement was continuous, and the 
moths were still ‘spiralling’ as I left. They were un-evenly 
spaced on the stone between 40 cms. and 1 metre above the 
ground, and no two individuals were closer together than 15 
cms. The vegetation at the base of the stone comprised mainly 
Common Couch Grass (Agropyron repens), with some Ivy 
(Hedera helix) and Bryony (Bryonia dioica). 

Two moths were collected from the stone, and a further 
five specimens of the same species were discovered later that 
day, lying dead on the inside window-sill of the nearby Church 
Hall, and were also collected. They were later identified as 
Mompha nodicolella Fuchs, by Lt. Col. A. M. Emmet, to 
whom I am most grateful for that favour. This event, pleas- 
ingly, provided a first record for Vice County 18 (South Essex) 
of this species of moth. — C. W. Ptant, B.Sc., M.B.O.U., 
Assistant Curator, Natural Sciences (Biology), Passmore 
Edwards Museum, Romford Road, Stratford, London E15 4LZ. 

ISLE OF CANNA: INVASION OF PAINTED LADIES AND RED 
ADMIRALS. — An invasion of P. cardui and V. atalanta began 
here with the start of a fine spell on June 9th, and produced 
cardui in larger number than have been seen here for a very 
long time — since the autumn of 1968 it has rarely been seen 
here. Numbers seen and reported were as follows: 


P. cardut V. atalanta 
June 9 2 3 
ee 6 1 Z 
al 5 ‘| 
Hateel 2 common common 
aap PEt common common 


I was absent from June 14th to June 21st. Rain fell on 
the evening of June 14th, ending what had become a drought 
here. The next week the weather was bad, with a full storm 
on June 19th and a gale on the 20th. I returned in bad weather 
on the 2Ist. The weather improved on the 23rd, when one 
cardui was seen. 24th, one specimen of cardui and one 
atalanta; 25th, walking round a 9 acre oat field at the east 
end of the island, I could count 19 cardui at the field’s edges, 
and also saw 4 elsewhere. 26th, 8-10 cardui near or around 
another oat field further west, 27th was cold and dull; 28th, 
4 or 5 cardui around the first oat field mentioned, 2 atalanta 
in gardens. Many of the cardui looked pale and worn. 

June 29th to July 5th were cold and dull days, with 
northerly winds. On July 7th a very worn cardui and a very 
ragged atalanta were seen near the east end of the island. On 
the 8th, Dr. Morton Boyd of the Nature Conservancy Council 
who was spending three days with us, organised a trip to the 
island of Heiskeir, which lies 6 miles south of the west end 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 25e 


of Canna, and extends to about ten acres, with a lighthouse 
manned by three men. The day was perfect, but with some 
north wind. I did not see any macrolepidoptera there this 
time ( my last visit was several years ago) but Mr. R. Sutton, 
warden of the Isle of Rum, saw a specimen of P. icarus there, 
and the lighthouse keepers, who said they had not seen any 
cardui or atalanta, also commented on the existence of the 
icarus colony on Heiskeir — which is totally exposed to the 
Atlantic gales, the highest point being only 32 feet above 
sea level. 

The final observations of cardui and atalanta on Canna 
were made by Dr. Morton Boyd, who saw 3 cardui and one 
atalanta near the east end of the island on July 9th, but 


none elsewhere in the course of wide ranging walks. — J. L. 
CAMPBELL, Isle of Canna, Hebrides. 
ETHMIA FUNERELLA F. LARVAE ON Myosortis. — In 1939, 


with the late H. W. Daltry, I took an example of Ethmia 
funerella in a wood on the Staffordshire side of Dovedale. 
There was no Symphytum in the vicinity and Mr. Daltry 
suggested the food plant might have been Myosotis sylvatica. 
Subsequently I found the moths in a number of places in the 
Manifold and Churnet valleys, resting on vegetation or fences 
along the margins of woods; in all these places Myosotis was 
present but no Symphytum. 

I have on several occasions searched for the larvae 
without sucess but on 3rd September 1980 I found larvae in 
two localities in the Churnet Valey on plants of Myosotis 
sylvatica, which at this time of year are often hidden under 
nettles and other rank growth. 

One larva I brought away readily accepted garden forget- 
me-not but after eating portions of one or two leaves it 
disapeared into the heart of the plant where it is apparently 
feeding in the stem at the base of the leaves, frass being 
extruded. This appears to be quite different from its described 
feeding habits on Symphytum: possibly it only occurs in the 
final stages before pupation and this may account for my 
finding larvae on only two or three of the plants which bore 
evidence of feeding on the leaves. — R. G. WARREN, Wood 
Ridings, 32 Whitmore Road, Trentham, Stoke-on-Trent. 

NEOFRISERIA SINGULA STDRG. (LEP.: GELECHIIDAE) IN 
RABBIT Burrows. — Whilst searching around the mouths of 
rabbit burrows at Lakenheath Warren on June Ist this year 
(with the object of discovering the beetle Cardiophorus asellus 
and others) I noticed several small moths flying inside the 
burrows, and on feeling about with the hand as far as could 
be reached, many more were disturbed. I sent several to 
Michael Chalmers-Hunt, who kindly identified them as the 
above species. 

There was no sign of the moth in the open; evidently 
it has some particular interest in adopting this habitat. — 
JOHN Parry, 38, Heather Drive, St. Michaels, Tenterden, 
Kent. 23.8.80. 


258 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/X/80 

ENTOMOLOGICAL CABINETS. — I was most interested in 
the article by R. L. E. Ford on entomological cabinets in 
Ent. Record Vol. 91, pp. 308-310, especially the cabinet 
mentioned in the penultimate paragraph. I was fortunate 
enough to purchase this particular cabinet from Mr. Ford at 
Watkins and Doncaster in 1967, for the sum of £66 (which 
included repapering! ). 

The cabinet comprises of 20 drawers in a single tier 
behind a fully-glazed door, and is made from Spanish mahog- 
any with stained oak lid frames. The overall drawer size is 
224” x 16”, the base of each drawer is made of #” solid 
mahogany and each drawer front is fitted with a brass dummy 
keyhole giving the impression that each drawer could be 
locked separately. According to the bill of sale, it was made 
by Queen Victoria’s head carpenter for the head gardener at 
Osborne House, a Mr. G. Nobbs, and contained his collection 
of butterflies. As might be expected Melitaea cinxia aber- 
rations were well represented, and I remember at least one 
drawer that contained about 60 little round mirrors with a 
small piece of cork glued to each. This drawer included many 
cinxia aberrations, and the idea was that both upper and 
undersides could be viewed with ease in the mirror without 
having to remove the insect. — A. S. Harmer, ‘Covertside’, 
Sway Road, Lymington, Hants, SO4 8MN. 

OTHER MIGRANTS ON THE ISLE OF CANNA BESIDES P. 
CARDUI AND V. ATALANTA. — During June, N. noctuella was 
noticed on the 11th and 24th, and P. gamma on the 11th and 
23rd. Moreover, coinciding with this immigration of lepidop- 
tera there has been a remarkable invasion of some kind of 
siphonophore around our shores. This was first observed by 
Dr. Morton Boyd and myself around Canna pier on July 8th 
while waiting to go to Heiskeir. It has become so abundant 
that beaches are now covered and the nets and lobster pots 
of fisherman are choked with it. — J. L. CAMPBELL, Isle of 
Canna, Hebrides. 

CYNTHIA CARDUI L., AGLAIS URTICAE L. AND VANESSA 
ATALANTA L. IN S. DEvon. — At north end of Slapton Sands 
peak sightings were as folows: C. cardui, June 6 (10), August 
24 (16), August 31 (17), September 1 (26), September 2 (28), 
September 3 (18), September 7 (25), September 8 (21), 
September 14 (10). A. urticae, September 1 (22), 2 (26), 3 (20), 
4:(12);'7 (28), 8 (63); FT G2), 14 (16), 17 7). Vv. atalania: 
September 1 (16), 2 (18). — H. L. O’HEFFERNAN, Chillington, 
Kingsbridge, S. Devon. 

MIGRANT DRAGONFLY AT MERCURY VAPOUR LIGHT. — On 
the 12th August 1979 in the company of numerous lepidopteran 
migrants I took a solitary specimen of Aeshna mixta Latreille 
at mercury vapour light. The specimen is a well known migrant 
but unusual in the fact that it approached and entered the 
Robinson trap. The trap was about two miles inland with a 
southern aspect in Eastbourne, E. Sussex. — M. Hap ey, 
Nature Conservancy Council, 19-20, Belgrave Square, London, 
SW1X 8PY. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 259 


LYCIA ZONARIA (D. & S.) (LEPIDOPTERA: GEOMETRIDAE) 
ON COLL, INNER HEBRIDES. — The timetable for the Caledonian 
MacBrayne ferry plying between Oban, Tobermory, Coll and 
Tiree is such that it is possible to have up to three hours 
ashore on Coll whilst the ferry does the return trip on to 
Tiree. On the 11th June 1980 I took advantage of this oppor- 
tunity and with a hired bicycle for transport I spent nearly 
two hours collecting Coleoptera in the extensive area of dune 
and machair between Feall Bay and Crossapol Bay near the 
southwest tip of the island. Whilst sweeping Lotus corni- 
culatus L. amongst the Ammophila on the fixed dunes (NM 
146541) I took five larvae of Lycia zonaria (D. & S.) Although 
this species is widespread on the machair of the Outer Hebrides 
(J. N. Greatorex-Davies, 1980, Entomologist’s Gaz., 31: 19- 
22) and has been recorded from Tiree, Rhum and Canna it 
has not, to my knowledge been previously recorded from 
Coll although its occurrence on the island was to be expected. 
However, at least during my brief visit, it must have been 
present in very low numbers as hand searching of the host 
plant in many separate localities failed to reveal further 
specimens. A number of other sandy bays was visited on Mull, 
Iona and Skye between 8th and 19th June 1980 but no further 
L. zonaria larvae were seen. Of the sites visited the extensive 
machair at the northern end of Iona (NM 2925) looked the 
most promising but the severe overgrazing of the whole area 
probably reduced its suitability for L. zonaria. — R. COLIN 
WELCH, Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Monks Wood Exper- 
imental Station, Abbots Ripton, Huntingdon, Cambs., PE17 
2LS, 8th August 1980. 


PAMMENE OBSCURANA STEPH. IN STAFFORDSHIRE. — I have 
now had three examples of this apparently scarce species in 
North Staffordshire, suggesting that it is thinly spread in the 
area in places where there are mature birch trees. The first 
was on 24th May 1976 at Craddocks Moss, a dried-out peat 
bog on which birch carr has developed. The second, on 3rd 
June 1979, was resting on the trunk of a beech tree in my 
garden at Trentham. A large birch tree stands near to the 
beech. The third specimen came to actinic light at Burnt 
Wood on 4th June 1980. — R. G. Warren, Wood Ridings, 
32 Whitmore Road, Trentham, Stoke-on-Trent. 


THE VESTAL: RHODOMETRA SACRARIA L. ON ROMNEY 
MarsH. — I took a specimen of this migrant moth from 
the m.v. trap in the garden here on 14th August 1980. — J. E. 
OweEN, Eastbridge House, Dymchurch, Kent. 


MATING BEHAVIOUR OF EPHESTIA KUEHNIELLA ZELLER 
(Lep.: PYRALIDAE). — On 6.xii.1979, I was given a culture of 
E. kuehniella by Philip Sterling, who had previously obtained 
them from Rev. David Agassiz at Enfield, Middlesex. This 
produced large numbers of moths, so I fortunately became 
rather behind with my setting, and was therefore able to 
observe the mating behaviour in this species. Emergence 


260 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/X/80 


occurred almost always in the afternoon, and mating began 
fairly soon after the wings were dry. The female was station- 
ary, with her abdomen projecting upwards between her almost 
closed wings. The male ran dizzily across the substrate, flapping 
his wings and making occasional short flights, eventually 
homing in on the female. On making contact, he rapidly 
whipped the tip of his abdomen over to meet the tip of hers. 
After two or three attempts in this way, successful contact 
was normally achieved. 

The ‘dizzy’ behaviour of the male suggests that this 
behaviour is prompted by pheromones, but I could detect no 
smell, nor could I see any eversible structures (other than 
the genitalia themselves) on either sex, in spite of considerable 
prodding as well as observation. It also seems that mating has 
to occur fairly soon after emergence: I deliberately put two 
individuals indulging in courtship into separate tubes and later 
put them together again, but there was no reaction, and no 


attempts at mating were made. — P. J. JOHNSON, 7, Haverhill 
Road, Horseheath, Cambridge, CB1 6QR. 
COLEOPHORA FUSCOCUPRELLA H.-S. IN HAMPSHIRE. — In 


October 1979, I found several cases on birch in Havant 
Thicket, and the moths emerged the following May. More 
cases were found in October 1980. Small bushes, especially 
seedlings, are preferred; and when feeding is completed the 
cases attach to the stem of the foodplant. The species has been 
previously unrecorded in Hampshire. — Dr. J. R. LANGMAID, 
38, Cumberland Court, Festing Road, Southsea, Hants, PO4 
ONH. 

AN ADDITIONAL EARLY SIGHTING OF THE SMALL ToR- 
TOISESHELL IN KENT. — Following Mr. Randall’s note (Ent. 
Rec., 92: 87), I should like to report another early sighting 
of Aglais urticae L. in the Isle of Thanet, Kent. At about 
midday on 25th January 1980, a single specimen landed on 
the roof of a white mini van parked in Rumfields Road, St. 
Peters, Broadstairs, and then flew into a nearby garden. It 
was a clear day, and mild for the time of year. This is 
certainly the earliest date that I have observed any butterfly 
species on the wing. — A. P. Foster, Ladn Vean, Grove Hill, 
Mawnan Smith, Falmouth, Cornwall, TR11 5ES. 

THE PALE EGGAR: TRICHIURA CRATAEGI L. IN KENT.— 
According to the Supplement to The Butterflies and Moths of 
Kent, this species appears to have become much scarcer in 
the county. It may therefore be of interest that I took two 
females in 1980, the first here on the night of 14th/15th 
September, and the second at m.v. at the southern end of 
Long Rope Wood, Orlestone on the 15th September. — M. 
ENFIELD, New Cottage, Warren Farm, Boughton Aluph, 
Ashford, Kent TN25 4HW. 

THE SMALL MARBLED: EUBLEMMA PARVA HBN. IN HAmp- 
SHIRE. — A single specimen of this species came to my m.v. 
trap at Southsea on the night of 7th August 1980. — Dr. J. R. 


LANGMAID, 38, Cumberland Court, Festing Road, Southsea, 
Hants. 


FOR SALE 


For Sale. — 20 drawer Crockett Cabinet in deal, in good condition. Overall 
dimensions 53” H, 21” W x 19” D. Drawer size 17” x 15” x 2” with lift off 
glass framed lids and camphor cell. Glass panelled door with lock. Collec- 
tion of British Butterflies and Moths optional. — Offers to L. T. Colley, 
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382. 


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Choose from a variety of paper surfaces and typefaces. 
Full details and sample labels on request. 


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CONTENTS 

The Heath Fritillary, Mellicta athalia Rott. in Britain: Notes on 

Distribution and Ecology. Dr. C. J. LUCKENS ... ae Sea Pas) 
Speculative Notes on the Kentish Glory. PD. MARRAN He: aa PD 
Crete 1979. M. W. COOPER and C. I. RUTHERFORD _.... Ct 239 
Records of some Non-Lepidopterous Insects from the New Forest 

Area: Dia J: Ci A, CRATKe - 2 ans st Shee 2AS 
Notes on some East Anglian Beetles. R. CROSSLEY ot 247 
Pontania crassipes (Thomson) (Hym.: Tenthredinidae) new to Wester 

Ross and comments on its local distribution. A. D. LISTON ... 249 
On the Feeding Habits of Thereva nobilitata F. re tae There- 

widae)y YZ. ERZINCLIOGLU  :::. ; be spe eet 


SPECIAL NOTICE 


The Editor would be willing to consider the purchase of a limited number 
of certain back issues. 


Contents cont. 


What is a British Moth? A. A. ALLEN _.... 252 
The White-letter Hairstreak: Strymonidia w-album Knoch. A. 
ARCHER-LOCK ue ae nee aie ANE SA: sen2S4 


Notes and Observations: 
Some Notes on the Vapourer Moth: Greve antigua L. MAR- 


GARET REESE ; 234 
A Northern Record of Wether heatricelly. (Wals.). P. “SOKO- 
LOFF 6 : 234 
Addition to the Gane ist De J: oy CAMPBELL fa: a 238 
Curious Discovery concerning the Dotted Rustic: Rhyacia 
simulans Hufnagel. J. N. dARCY ... ae 242 
The Vestal: Rhodometra sacraria L. in Surrey. K. G. Ww. 
EVANS _... ; a 242 
The Clouded Yellow: T Galins croceus Geof. in Conwell B. 
CHESNEY oa. 5) 2A6 
The White-speck Wainscot: Modlirane albipuncta D. & Ss: 
Hampshire. Dr. J. R. LANGMAID ... 246 
The Vestal: Rhodometra sacraria L. and other Lepidoptera . 
Tonbridge. A. E. TAPP ae 248 
Oulimnius major (Rey) (=O. falcifer Berthelemy) (Col Eimi- 
dae) New to Britain. J. A. PARRY .. ‘ ae 24S 
The Return of the Orange-tip. J. R. MILLER Ase 248 
Scrobipalpa ocellatella (Boyd) (Lep.: aie on Culfivated 
Beet. P. J. JOHNSON .... a 248 
Platyptilia isodactylus Z. in Siattondshice: R. G: “WARREN sch S2AS 
A Third Specimen of Rhyacia simulans ein) in Kent. P. 
SOKOLOFF nee 250 
Plusia gamma L. and Nomoukiia noctuelin D. & S. in S, ipeven 
H. L. O HEFFERNAN Eee 251 
Some Observations on the Scarce Chocolate Tip: ‘Clewern 
anachoreta D. & S. K. G. W. EVANS _... Ee shih ODO 
Parthenogenesis. P. J. JOHNSON ... Bg eS 
Unusual Behaviour of Mompha_nodicolella iPocha) Cc W. 
PLANT ab sar R26 
Isle of Canna: Invasion of Painted: ediew and ‘Red Avdeaieate 
Drie CAMPBELL ie er a. e-akS 
Ethmia funerella F. larvae on Myosotis. R. G. "WARREN Rea) spy 
Neofriseria singula Stdgr. in Rabbit Burrows. J. A. PARRY ... 257 
Entomological Cabinets. A. S. HARMER a 258 
Other Migrants on the Isle of Canna besides P. conde ay 
V. atalanta. Dr. J. L. CAMPBELL ... oe 258 
Cynthia cardui L., Aglais urticae L. and Vanessa aeatense i 
in S. Devon. H. L. OHEFFERNAN eh Aref a7 Bhs. 
Migrant Dragonfly at Mercury Vapour Light. M. HADLEY EOD: 
Lycia zonaria (D. & S.) on Coll, Inner Hebrides. R. C. 
WPEECH Iie 259 
Pammene obscurana ‘Steph. in Staffordsnire! R. G. “WAR- 
REN ae 259 
The Vestal: Rhadoneen sacraria L. on Romney Maret Je E. 
OWEN Bes 259 
Mating Behaviour of Epheria ialehnielte Z. ip fs ‘JOHNSON . 259” 
Coleophora fascarunrene H.-S. in aL Dr Jn. LANG- 
MAID ¥y 260 
An Additional Boe, Bishtine of he Small fioriolseshelliG in 
Kent, Ai ROSTER pe. : 260 
The Pale Eggar: Trichiura crataesi ie in Kent. M. EN- 
FIELD A 260 
The Small Marbled: Bablenne Be Hbn. in fen ine of 
R. LANGMAID ne 260 


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He 261 
British Pugs 
By Brig. E. C. L. Stmson* 


Introduction 

It was not until he was sixty-five years old that the author 
decided to make a collection of those moths of the genera 
Eupithecia, Chloroclystis, Gymnoscelis and Anticollix, which 
breed in Britain and are known, colloquially, as Pugs. In telling 
of the fun and interest he has had in obtaining all but two 
of his quarry, there is a possibility that he may nudge some 
other veteran into the fascination of “limited entomology”’. 

The author is now aged seventy-two; so the collecting 
of series of 50 species of pug has taken him seven years: 
doubtless a younger man could have accomplished this in a 
very much shorter time. Indeed, there are rumours going that 
a B.E.N.H.S. member recently collected every species of 
British Clearwings (Sesiidae) in one year; others say it was 
two! Be that as it may, the elderly ‘“pug-hunter” enjoys the 
leisurely search for pug larvae in the peaceful warmth of 
sunny September days. There is no need to rush things; always 
the optimistic septuagenarian whispers to himself — tomorrow 
is another year. 

And so it is. Those larvae that he failed to find will surely 
turn up as fine, fresh imago at his M.V. light in that forest 
ride; or by that reedy fen, in another season, This is the secret 
of success. As in a good golf-swing; one must not press. If one 
does then stress follows and, besides being bad for blood- 
pressure, it clouds the mind and diminishes pleasure. So the 
pug-hunter plans his travels with care, taking into account 
the earliness or lateness of the season. 

The prime aim must be to breed as many specimens as 
possible, either ex ovis or ex larvis. This is why the finding 
of larvae has been stressed. These little moths, when perfectly 
fresh, are often beautifully marked and thus easily identified. 
Even when not well marked, (one thinks of virgaureata and 
trisignaria in particular) fresh bred specimens of these species 
can readily be placed without recourse to examination of the 
genitalia, which often only applies to the males. Other species, 
such as absinthiata, denotata, pimpinellata and expallidata, 
when they have been on the wing for but a short time, lose 
all their bright credentials and become just another faded, 
brown pug. 

And this is where the late Denzil ffennell came to the 
assistance of the author, who had been consulting him about 
the identification of many worn pug specimens. ““Why not’, 
said Denzil, “‘start to breed pugs; they are easy to rear and, 
except for the incidence of parasitism, which, in some species, 
is over 70%, will ensure that you obtain perfect series”. He 
went on to give localities, dates, descriptions of the food-plants 
and habits of the different larvae. Denzil never accompanied 
the author in the field, nor did he give him any specimens. 


*4 Durnford Close, Chilbolton, Stockbridge, Hants. 


262 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


But he gave him knowledge, incentive and encouragement. 
The author particularly remembers showing Denzil a fine, 
fresh bred series of chloerata in 1973 (the species was not 
known to occur in Britain until 1971). Denzil’s only comment 
was, ‘Fine: how about replacing that shabby lot of rectangu- 
lata, so as to match it’’. Incidentally, at about that time, the 
author was lucky enough to take an immaculate Dingy Mocha 
(C. orbicularia) and told Denzil of the find. He came over, 
post-haste, having himself never taken this rare insect and, 
perhaps, thinking it might be a dark form of C. pendularia. 
He took his magnifying glass from his pocket and studied the 
trophy in silence. And then the author heard the one word 
‘“‘beautiful”’, in just a whisper: the greatest praise he ever 
had from Denzil; and this not meant for his ears! 

Other people have been of the greatest help in the col- 
lecting of these pugs and will be named, with gratitude, as 
various species are considered; but without Denzil ffennell, 
the venture would never have been started. 


The Collection 

It is my intention to exhibit my collection of 50 species 
of British pugs at the 1980 Annual Exhibition of B.E.N.H.S. 
on Ist November 1980. In this paper I would like to consider 
the collection in such detail as may help anyone wishing to 
study the subject ab initio. Accordingly, I list each species 
in the order chosen by Meyrick; a man who gave some of 
the earliest identification data available, as well as larval 
description; pabulum and wing measurements. 

C. coronata Hubn. A species which occurs at M.V. 
light, particularly in June. I have taken it at such diverse 
places as Portland, Tintern Abbey, Stockbridge Down. I have 
not yet obtained the larvae. 

2. C. rectangulata Linn. Another species not bred. 
Nevertheless, so well distributed that perfect specimens can 
be obtained at light, including melanistic types. 

3. C. debiliata Huibn. By chance I took two specimens 
at M.V. in the New Forest on 26th June. As there was much 
bilberry (Vaccinium) in the area I went the following spring 
and, on 8th May, took six larvae from the spun up leaves at 
the tips of bilberry twigs. 

4. G. pumilata Hiibn. When quite fresh this is a finely 
marked pug; particularly plentiful in late April in the New 
Forest. Of interest is that the second generation, flying in 
July, appears half the size of the April moths. Meyrick, who 
gives the minimum and maximum measurements of all pugs, 
shows this clearly when he quotes 16-22 mm. for pumilata. 
This is the largest variation in any pug measurements recorded 
by him. It is worth noting that the second generation of E. 
nanata is also very much smaller than the first generation. 
Meyrick missed the point, because he only knew of one gen- 
eration of nanata, flying 5, 6. 

5. E. venosata Fabr. I had to wait quite a few years before 
finding a thriving colony in some Silene, which fortunately 


BRITISH PUGS 263 


escaped the roadman’s lust for cutting down roadside flowers 
just sufficiently long for me to collect some well grown larvae. 
I say just long enough, because a week later I took a friend 
to collect a few only to find every plant cut to the ground. 
The damage done to wild life by thoughtless, often quite 
unnecessary cutting, must be colossal. The larvae collected 
produced the series shown. 

6. E. expallidata Doubl. Where Solidago virgaurea stands 
about the woodland rides in some profusion, there the larvae 
of this fine pug are to be had; often half a dozen on one 
small plant. It was Denzil ffennell who told me to go to 
Ampfield Forest and look on the Golden Rod. Unfortunately 
I thought the plant would look like the fine flower I had seen 
in many a cottage garden. After an hour or so walking the 
rides I met a woodman and asked him where this plant grew, 
describing the garden variety. He said he had never seen it 
in all his years in the forest. So I returned to Denzil and told 
him all the Golden Rod had gone. He said nonsense, and it 
was only by chance that he mentioned it was only a small 
plant, not unlike Ragwort in shape and size. So I hurried 
back, rapidly found the wild Golden Rod, and had all the 
larvae I needed in a very short time. 

7. E. denotata Hiibn. Here again the local Campanula 
trachelium is the clue to this pug’s capture. Unfortunately it 
is very often picked. The secondary flowering, which follows, 
does not produce seedheads at the time required by the larvae, 
and so difficulty can arise in finding occupied seedheads. Where 
the plant is left to flower normally, many larvae can be found 
with ease. 

It is, I think, worth mentioning that the imago carries 
a very useful identification sign, consisting of a well marked, 
pale, wavy sub-terminal line on the lower wing. This is not 
present on expallidata nor on pimpinellata. 

8. E. goossensiata Mab. There will be those who will say 
that this is not a species; merely the moorland form of 
absinthiata. They may be right. However, the imago is so 
much smaller and greyer that it is worth collecting. My series 
was made on a New Forest heath, partly by tapping through 
the heather; partly by putting the M.V. out on the heath. 
24th July is a good date. 

9. E. absinthiata Clerck. Bred specimens have a fine, 
warm Red Rum kind of look, and are handsome enough. 
The larvae are incredibly plentiful in my part of the world 
(Hants-Wilts border). They are also remarkably variable, which 
all adds to the fun of seeing what ultimately emerges the 
following year from a mixed bag of pug-larvae, taken some 
September day from Artemesia, Achillea, Senecio, etc. 

10. E. assimilata Doubl. A pretty little pug, distinguished 
by its large tornal white spot on both wings. Unfortunately, 
most owners of currant bushes, these days, apply all sorts of 
horrible chemicals to ensure that, even if assimilata should 
lay her little, pale, green eggs on their currant bushes, no 


264 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


larvae will survive. Perhaps one should only search the wild 
hop (Humulus). This not a common plant in my neighbour- 
hood; yet I take the imago occasionally. 

11. E. pimpinellata Hiibn. A particularly attractive pug, 
showing good variety. The long, thin, dark green larvae make 
little, fairy bridges between the stems and flowers of the 
Burnet Saxifrage (Pimpinella). This is a downland plant of 
vast insignificance. As so often with the English vernacular 
names for wild things, it is neither a Burnet nor a Saxifrage. 
The Wood Lark (L. arborea) does not inhabit woods, the 
Marsh Tit (P. palustris) seldom lives in marshes, the Meadow 
Pipit (A. pratensis) eschews meadows, prefering the upland 
moors. And so on. 

Having found the Burnet Saxifrage, the best thing for 
the aged pug-hunter to do is to lie down on the sweet-smelling 
turf, amongst a goodly crop of Pimpinella, and gaze myopi- 
cally at the plants, but six inches from the face. If the date 
is mid-September then success, in time, is assured (on my 
downland, at least). The trouble is, for every ten larvae found 
eight will have been parasitised. The parasites usually appear 
from the larvae; but one can be dealt a nasty back-hander 
by another sort of parasite, which emerges from the pupae 
the following year. This excessive parasitism must account 
for the fact that I have never yet flushed the imago on the 
downs; the moth is so scarce as an imago. However, by per- 
severance, I have bred sufficient and show a selected series of 
5 6 and 59. 

12. E. valerianata Hubn. Last year my friend John Fenn, 
a B.E.N.H.S. member living in Breckland, rang to say valeri- 
anata larvae were in plenty in a particular marsh. Accordingly, 
I dashed up to Norfolk on 27th July and John took me to the 
marsh, where the tall Valeriana officinalis grew. Small larvae 
were very difficult to see, as their procrypsis was excellent. 
However, I really needed nearly full grown larvae, because 
of pabulum problems at home. With John’s help I soon had 
eighteen fine, big larvae and some of the subsequent imagines 
are shown in the collection. Parasitism was negligible. 

13. E. tripunctaria H.-S. This moth is particularly plenti- 
ful along the banks of the Test and hunting for the larvae 
can often fill in a quiet patch in a September day’s fishing. 
I have only found it on Angelica. But a problem surrounds 
this species, because the imagos emerge in May. Also, the 
fact that bred specimens from autumn larvae also emerge in 
April and May supports the view that the species is double 
brooded. Meyrick states that the moth flies in May and June 
and that the larva feeds in September on the seeds of Angelica. 
The fact is that the moth also flies, in the wild, in July, 
which rather knocks over the idea that Meyrick’s May flying 
moths laid eggs which lay dormant until the Angelica had 
seeded in September. South gives the same dates as Meyrick 
for the moth’s emergence; neither consider a second gener- 
ation in the wild. 


BRITISH PUGS 265 


I think there can be no doubt that the species is double 
brooded, but I have not been able to find the June larvae, 
which obviously can not feed on Angelica or Heracleum. 
Perhaps somebody has found the early summer pabulum of 
this species. 

14. E. vulgata Haw. Found all over Britain from the Isle 
of Wight to the Hebrides in indecent plenitude. 

15. E. centaurata Fabr. A handsome pug with a very 
variable and often very pretty larva, which turns up whenever 
one searches Umbelliferae or Compositae in the autumn. 

16. E. subfulvata Haw. A large, well marked pug, which 
often appears as the sole reperesentative of the “pugs” in 
some collections. At least the collector knows he can not be 
faulted on its correct identification. How he wishes the same 
could be said for certain others of the tribe! 

17. E. satyrata Hiibn. I have been much interested in 
this species because of its considerable variety. One warm 
June day, on the massive flanks of Ben Lawers in Perthshire, 
I disturbed it in numbers from the herbage as I walked. It was 
of the rather plain, brown, form called ab. callunaria by South. 

Here, on the Hampshire Downs, we breed a very different 
looking satyrata. It is very dark, with boldy marked striae 
and veins. The subterminal white line ends in a clear white 
tornal dot. Indeed, I have one specimen so dark and with 
such a striking white line and dot, as to be at first glance 
easily taken for tripunctaria. 

It is by no means plentiful in Hampshire and the larva 
has to be worked for. I sweep for it in August on the downs, 
paying special attention to those areas where Knapweed 
(Centaurea nigra), Scabious and Hawkweed (Hieracium) are 
in flower. Larvae of subumbrata and castigata will outnumber 
satyrata, but sufficient of the striking purplish or rosy larvae 
of this species will be found, in the course of years, to provide 
a small series as shown. 

18. E. pulchellata Steph. This was one of the earliest 
pugs which I succeeded in breeding. One finds the larvae at 
the time one searches for iris imago. It is a welcome relief 
to spend a short time looking downwards, after hours of 
gazing upwards into the tops of so-called ‘“‘master-oaks”’! 
The pabulum, Digitalis purpurea grows in pleasant, open spaces 
in the woods and when one finds a rather wan looking “‘finger’’, 
with the end sealed, the chances are it will be occupied by 
a larva of this species. Unless, that is, there is a neat, round 
hole in the upper half of the “‘finger’’, which shows that the 
larva has cleaned up here and has moved on. He will not 
have gone far, unless, in the words of the immortal P. B. M. 
Allan, “‘he has gone to that bourne from which no caterpillar 
returns — at least as a caterpillar”’. 

When collecting on Skye I was delighted to find a perfect 
specimen of the grey variety of pulchellata trying to get into 
the sitting room of the farm house, in which we were staying. 
South calls this Hebridian form var. hebudium Sheldon. It is 
certainly strikingly different, and is shown. 


266 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


19. E. linariata Fabr. A very pretty little moth, which 
must be bred to obtain the best results. Fortunately, this is 
of the utmost ease. Just make certain that any particular 
clump of Linaria vulgaris has a larva or two on its flowers 
and then pick a bunch. This should provide all that the 
reasonable collector should require. When I say “‘reasonable”, 
I mean a collector who does not amass long series of specimens 
of a species, all of which look exactly the same. I, myself, 
think that a selected series of 5 @ and 5 2 can provide ail 
that is necessary, both scientifically and aesthetically, for most 
pug species. And that is what I show. It also meets spatial, 
and hence expense, requirements. 


(To be continued) 


FURTHER OBSERVATIONS ON THE COLEOPHORA MILVIPENNIS 
Group. — I read with great interest Colonel Emmet’s illumi- 
nating paper on Coleophora adjectella H.-S. and his review 
of the milvipennis group in Britain. 

On 21st May 1980 he took me to a wood near Barton 
Mills, Suffolk, to find cases of what we both hoped would be 
C. alnifoliae Barasch on birch. Many were found, and moths 
duly emerged in the latter half of June. Examination of the 
female genitalia show that these are C. milvipennis Zell. It 
appears therefore, that at least in this locality, milvipennis 
need not complete its feeding in the autumn, but does so in 
the spring and early summer. Doubt must also be cast on the 
theory that alnifoliae can feed on birch; and perhaps Karsholt 
and Schmidt Neilsen are correct in stating that it only feeds 
on alder. 

In Portsmouth there are thriving colonies of both C. 
limosipennella Dup. and C. badiipennella Dup. Their habits 
seem to differ from the observations made by Colonel Emmet. 
Here cases of badiipennella make their appearance, the larvae 
feeding on young leaves of elm in late April and early May, 
the moths emerging in early June; so at least some are not 
fully fed by the autumn. In late May and June C. limosi- 
sipennella can be found, the larvae making their chracteristi- 
cally large mines, and these produce moths at the end of June 
and in July. This latter observation is confirmed by Heckford 
who found cases of limosipennella at Heyshott, Sussex, in mid- 
June 1980 which produced moths in July of the same year. 
What is not yet clear is whether these are feeding in their 
third year, thus supporting the view that it has a two-year 
cycle, or whether they are in their second year, therefore, at 
least in the very South of England, having a one-year cycle. 
— J. R. LaNeatp, 56 Festing Road, Southsea, Hants. 


LaTE APPEARANCES, 1980. — In spite of the cool summer 
and autumn, I saw a @ Green-veined White (Pieris napi L.) 
on October 29th and a 9 Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina L.) 
on November 2nd, both in good condition, here in South 
Devon. — A. ARcHER-Lock, 4 Glenwood Road, Mannamead, 
Plymouth, Devon. 


267 
Territorial Behaviour in British Butterflies 


By W. G. SHREEVES* 


‘The Purple Emperors at Play’, described by Major 
General Lipscomb in the September 1979 issue of the Ento- 
mologist’s Record were almost certainly displaying what is 
rather loosely defined as ‘Territorial Behaviour’. In order to 
locate a mate butterflies have evolved three basic strategies. 
Some species use the method known as patrolling; that is the 
males fly almost continuously about the habitat searching for 
females. The authority on this form of behaviour is C. Wiklund 
who researched it by following 11 male Leptidea sinapis 
(Wood Whites) for 9 days. A second method involves long 
distance pheremones; here the females attract the males by 
emitting a type of scent. The third method is known as 
perching; in this case the males spend part of the day sitting 
on some object while waiting for passing females. The behav- 
iour of Major General Lipscomb’s Purple Emperors, which 
he described as joining in ‘a sort of aerial battle’, falls into 
this category. The research in this area has been carried out 
on A glais urticae (Small Tortoiseshell) and Inachis io (Peacock) 
by R. Baker and on Pararge aegeria (Speckled Wood) by 
N. B. Davies. Hopefully it will gradually be extended to most 
British species so that we know much more about their behav- 
iour patterns. 

Basically the perching method works like this. The males 
of the species begin by selecting a territory. P. aegeria 
commences as early as 9.00 a.m.; A. urticae and /. io not until 
after mid-day. The type of territory varies from species to 
species. A. urticae prefers the vertical edge provided by a 
hedge or wall: J. io also goes for vertical edges but likes rows 
of trees better; P. aegeria selects a sunspot or sunshine pool 
in a woodland ride or glade and moves as the angle of the 
sun changes. The common factor in all these territories is 
that they maximize the male’s chance of meeting a female. 
Within each territory the male then selects his ‘perch’. A. 
urticae and I. io seem happy to choose a piece of bare earth; 
P. aegeria likes a frond of bracken or a bramble leaf 1 metre 
high. In a paper written back in 1902 N. H. Joy pointed out 
that Apatura iris (Purple Emperor) favoured a ‘throne’ in an 
oak tree. 

Once established on his ‘territory’ the male then proceeds 
to ‘defend’ it. Any object passing overhead and roughly of 
the appropriate size of that species is ‘investigated’. The males 
are sometimes so anxious that they are not too fussy about 
what they investigate. I have even received well authenticated 
reports of Vanessa atalanta (Red Admiral) flying off its perch 
to inspect a Kestrel which was hovering about 3 metres off 
the ground! When the investigation has proved that the 
intruder is of an alien species the ‘owner’ of the territory 
returns to his perch. However if the intruder is another male 


* 5 Butt’s Mead, Shaftesbury, Dorset. 


268 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


of the owner’s species a ‘tournament’ commences . Each 
species appears to have evolved its own set of rules. In the 
case of P. aegeria both individuals spiral vertically upwards 
seeming to bump into each other. After a while one returns 
to perch in the sunspot and the other disappears into the 
canopy of trees above. A. urticae and I. io behave in a 
similar manner. The resident male intercepts the intruder and 
together the pair spiral upwards, each male trying to achieve 
and maintain a position slightly behind and above the other. 
Rather like a World War II fighter pilot, the ‘loser’ then 
breaks off the action and goes into a series of dives to try 
to shake off his opponent. Eventually a ‘winner’ returns to 
the territory and resumes his perch. In the majority of cases 
the winner is the original owner of the territory. As N. B. 
Davies remarks in his article, the intruder is in effect saying, 
‘Sorry I didn’t know there was anyone occupying the sunspot, 
ll retreat back into the canopy’. But suppose the owner of 
the territory had flown off for a moment or failed to notice 
the intruder before he found a perch? In that case the 
friendly ‘tournament’ turns into something more like a ‘battle’ 
because both males regard themselves as the owners. N. B. 
Davies provoked several of these battles artificially by smug- 
gling in an intruder male P. aegeria. The resulting spiral 
combats might last up to ten times as long as the normal 
polite ‘tournament’. R. Baker found that the winner of these 
‘battles’ was usually the male who could navigate his way 
back to the original territory despite the violent twists and 
turns of the combat flight. Normally this was the original 
Owner, presumably he had begun to know the position of his 
territory. However,, in a smaller percentage of cases the 
intruder might succeed in finding his way back. In that case 
further battles commenced and, if the intruder managed to 
come back at least twice more, he then had a reasonable 
chance of emerging the ‘winner’. Unless they lose one of 
these conflicts, male P. aegeria seem to stay on the same 
sunspot for most of the day, ending their vigil around 15.00 
hours. I. io stays at his post throughout the afternoon. A. 
urticae, however, is likely to change his territory at least once. 
Of course the arrival of a female on the scene provokes the 
usual courtship behaviour typical to each species. 

It should be clear from this that what Major General 
Lipscomb witnessed was a rather exceptional territorial battle 
involving perhaps two adjacent A. iris territories and two 
intruders. As far as I know Quercusia quercus (Purple Hair- 
streak) has not been researched but it seems very likely that 
this species too is a ‘percher’. In which case the general activity 
would have triggered off the quercus males into inspection 
flights, thus adding to the general confusion. There is no 
doubt that research into this area of behaviour is both fasci- 
nating and important. If the Naturalists’ Trusts are to succeed 
in setting up properly managed conservation areas where our 
less common species can be preserved they need all the infor- 


TERRITORIAL BEHAVIOUR OF BRITISH BUTTERFLIES 269 


mation they can get about the territorial requirements of 
butterflies. With this object in view I have spent three years 
attempting to study the mate-locating behaviour of Hamearis 
lucina (The Duke of Burgundy Fritillary). It is too early yet 
to make firm conclusions but there is no doubt that the species 
is a ‘percher’. In its woodland habitat, where the larva feeds 
on primroses, the males occupy territories at path intersections 
and choose perches in grass, nettles or dwarf shrubs. They 
behave in much the same way as the other butterflies already 
researched; they make investigation flights, engage in tour- 
naments and battles with other males. They do, however, 
seem to remain on the same territory from 10.00 hours to 
15.00 hours and a high proportion re-appear on the same 
territory several days in succession. A downland colony, on 
the other hand, where the larval food plant is cowslip, seems 
to be showing significant variations. The males choose terri- 
tories which are packed very close together with the result 
that there are many more tournaments and battles than in 
the woodland colony. If there are any entomologists who 
know this species well I should welcome comments from them 
on any characteristics of behaviour they have observed. 


References 


R. R. Baker, 1972. Teritorial Behaviour of the Nymphalid Butterflies, 
Aglais urticae and Inachis io. Journal. Anim. Ecol., 41. 

N. B. Davies, 1978. Territorial Defence in the Speckled Wood. Animal. 
Behaviour, 1978: 26. 

N. H. Joy, 1902. (No title) Proc. Ent. Soc. London. XL-XLI.19 
Nov. 1902. 

C. Wiklund, Courtship Behaviour in relation to female monogamy in 
Leptidea sinapis Oikos, 29. Copenhagen. 1977. 


ABNORMAL ABUNDANCE OF VANESSA ATALANTA L. IN SOUTH 
Devon. — At the end of September and for the first few days 
of October 1980, my wife and I had a brief holiday in S. 
Devon near Bolt Head. While we were there we couldn’t help 
noticing the remarkable numbers of Red Admirals that were 
everywhere along the coast. My first came to our notice when, 
soon after our arrival, I counted thirty on a patch of ivy 
blossom near our hotel. They proved to be equally common 
all along the coast from Start Point to Bantham on the river 
Avon Estuary, the coastal limits of our wanderings. 

The butterflies were very fresh and I am certain were 
the result of a big local emergence, particularly as full fed 
larvae and pupae could be found readily on local nettle 
patches. I even picked up a recently hatched cripple crawling 
about on the cliff path. Apart from the Red Admirals no 
other butterflies were represented by more than a few odd 
individuals. 

Here in Wiltshire this autumn I have seen no Red 
Admirals at all on the flowers in my garden although these 
have been well patronised by Small Tortoiseshells and a few 
Painted Ladies. — Major General C. G. Lipscoms, The 
Riding, Knook, Warminster, Wiltshire. 


270 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 
The Folklore of the Lepidoptera 
By..Gi'B, DesParp, BiSc.Jh Res 


The lepidoptera do not figure greatly in the folklore of 
the British Isles since it is only the most obvious species that 
attract attention and have traditions attached to them. 

The majority of the beliefs relating to the Lepidoptera 
have their origin in the curious idea that the human soul 
takes on the form of a butterfly (or moth) after death. This 
belief is ancient and widespread and is to be found in many 
cultures. In Britain the further step was taken to equate 
differing types of butterfly or moth with the souls of different 
groups of people (e.g. Vanessa atalanta L. with Cardinals and 
large grey moths such as Cerura vinula L. with millers.). 

The ‘whites’ have long been looked on as pest species 
and the advice given in one nineteenth century popular work 
on the insects to, ‘teach children to destroy every white butter- 
fly they see,’ (1) was followed in many parts of the country. 
However, the whites were often given the name of unpopular 
groups of people and called ‘enemies souls’. The only exception 
to this hatred of whites was to be found in Cambridgeshire 
where they were said to be the souls of young children (2) — 
to see one indicated that a child had just died (white has 
always, in Britain, symbolised innocence and purity). In 
Lincolnshire whites were called Frenchmen (3) whilst in 
Westmorland; 

“the white variety were called Papishes (Papists = Roman 

Catholics) and were hunted by gangs of boys on Oak 

Apple Day (May 29th); the variegated kind (perhaps 

Aglais urticae L.) were King George’s Butterflies and 

were, technically at least, though not always actually, 

safe from destruction on that day.” (4). 

In Scotland A. urticae did not receive the partial protection 
afforded it in Westmorland for as Edward Newman records 
(5) it was called the ‘Devil Butterfly’ or the ‘Witch Butterfly’ 
and these were hunted and killed (6). However, in this case 
the insect was probably thought to be a witch who had trans- 
formed herself into the form of a butterfly, rather than that 
the butterfly was the witch’s soul. The transformation of 
witches into animals (usually hares or cats) (7) is a common 
belief although stories of transformations into insects are very 
rare. I only know of one case, in which a seventeenth century 
Hertfordshire witch confessed that she had cut the thread 
of a spinning girl whilst she was in the form of a bee. (8) 
I know of no case in which a witch was claimed to have 
turned herself into a butterfly. 

The Red admiral (V. atalanta) may once have had tra- 
ditions associated specifically with it, since in Kent it was 
called the Cardinal (9), whilst the Rev. F. O. Morris (10) 
caled it the Alderman. Both Cardinals and Aldermen wear 
red robes and V. atalanta is the only British butterfly with 


* Silver Crest, Silver Street, Sway, Lymington, Hants. 


THE FOLKLORE OF THE LEPIDOPTERA 20k 


red on its wings. Both groups of people were unpopular; 
Cardinals since they were catholics and Aldermen are often 
represented in traditional tales and songs as fat, greedy and 
dishonest. 

The magnificent Deaths Head Hawk (Acherontia atropos 
L.) has never been common enough in Britain to have become 
the harbinger of evil that it is in France, although individual 
specimens would be treated with superstitious horror when 
they were found as the Rev. J. G. Wood tells us (11); 

‘In a small village removed from the influence of the 
railways, (this was in 1870) on one Sunday morning, as the 
inhabitants were going through the churchyard, a Death’s- 
Head Moth appeared on the path. Every one recoiled in 
dismay, and no one dared to approach the dreaded object. 
Sundry heads were shaken at the evil omen, and various 
prophetic remarks were made. At last, the blacksmith sum- 
moned up his courage, and with a great jump, came down 
on the unfortunate moth, and happily destroyed it. I have 
this specimen now in my possession; it is of course mashed 
quite flat.’ 

I rather suspect that many people finding one today 
would be terrified at its appearance though not to the extent 
of the villagers. 

One curious tradition connected with this insect is that 
it first appeared in England after the execution of Charles 1 
in 1649. One author even tells us that it was said, “that the 
Deaths-Head moth has been very common in Whitehall (!) 
since the execution of Charles 1.’ (12) This is one of the 
many beliefs that became associated with the execution of 
‘King Charles the Martyr’ as he was termed (even in the 
Book of Common Prayer until 1860.). 

In Yorkshire the Ghost Swift (Hepialus humuli L.) was 
called the ‘Soul’ and left strictly alone (13); this, and the 
present common name suggest traditions that seem to be lost. 

The common name ‘Miller’, for Acronicta leporina L., 
embodies a widespread belief and custom. For many centuries 
millers have been held to be highly dishonest (see Chaucer’s 
“The Reeves Tale’’), and certain moths have been called 
‘millers’. This name has been applied to at least three species, 
A. leporina, Dasychira pudibunda L. and Cerura vinula L. 
all of which are dusty grey (just like a miller). On finding 
one of these moths a child (in Dorset) would chant; 

*Millery, Millery, dusty poll, 

How many sacks hast thee a-stole? 

Four and twenty and a peck, 

Hang the old miller up by the neck.” (14) 

— then kill it. This rhyme was to be found, with slight 
variations, in many southern counties. 

Lepidoptera seen under unusual circumstances were often 
regarded as omens, although the interpretations could vary 
from place to place, thus three white butterflies seen together 
was an omen of ill fortune in Northamptonshire (15). 


212 


butterfly seen in the year. In Gloucestershire it could foretell 
your success (or lack of it) in the coming year (17). If it was 
‘white’ (probably Gonepteryx rhamni L.) the year would be 
good and you could afford to eat white bread. If it was 
‘brown’, however, (nachis io L. or A. urticae) you would have 
a bad year and be forced to eat brown bread. 


Somerset, whilst in Wiltshire it was only the first white one 
that was killed. One lady, born in 1902, recalls that her 
mother pointed it out to her saying; 


She then remembers chasing it around the garden trying to 
swat it (18). In Cornwall, however, the first butterfly killed 
each year brought bad luck to the killer (19). These stories are 
obviously related to the tradition of the butterfly as a human 
soul. The first butterfly is seen as the soul of an enemy which 
ought to be killed, although in Cornwall to kill it would 
probably offend the ‘enemy’ and so cause even more trouble, 
which is why it was left alone. 


doptera — even amongst entomologists! For example I have 
been told that to see many Polygonia c-album L. in the spring 
fortells a good year for butterflies. (20). 


in the butterfly population, it is very pleasant to find such a 
tradition still extant, and one wonders if other similar beliefs 
still survive? 


WONN A PWN 


ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


Finally there are the curious beliefs concerning the first 


The first butterfly was hunted and killed in Devon and 


“That’s the first butterfly, it’s your enemy, so kill it”. 


There are some traditions still current concerning lepi- 


Whilst many people are bemoaning the apparent decline 


References 


Houghton, W., 1888. Sketches of British Insects, 42. 

Porter, E., 1969. Cambridgeshire Customs and Folklore, 50. 
Newall, V., 1971. Discovering the Folklore of Birds and Beasts, 17. 
Radford, E., Radford, M., & Hole, C., 1978. The Folklore of the 
Countryside, 25. 

Newman, E., 1870. The Ilustrated Natural History of British 
Butterflies, 54. 

Radford, E., et al. op. cit. 25. 

Murray, M., 1921. The Witch-Cult in Western Europe, 231. 
Jones-Baker, D., 1977. The Folklore of Hertfordshire. 111. 

The name ‘Cardinal’ was told to me by an elderly lady when I 
was a child in Kent in the early 1960’s. 

Morris, F. O., 1870. A History of British Butterflies. 58. 


. Wood, J. G., 1870. The Boys Own Book of Natural History. 368. 
. Houghton, W., op. cit. 51. 
. ‘F.S.’ in Choice Notes from Notes and Queries: Folklore 1859. 61. 


Udal, J. S., 1922. Dorsetshire Folklore. 
“T.S.’ in Choice Notes — op. cit. 17. 
Porter, E., op. cit. 49. 
Thistleton-Dyer, T. F., 1878. English Folklore. 133-4. 


. Bunce, N. E., in letter dated 2-10-79. The story concerns Mr. 


Bunce’s mother and grandmother. 


. Deane, T., & Shaw, T., 1975. The Folklore of Cornwall, 133. 


Simcox, D., in a conversation in March 1979. 


273 


Further Observations on Freezing Insects for Storage 
By Dr. RONALD S. WILKINSON* 


In a former paper (Wilkinson, 1974) I described my 
efforts during eight years to freeze smaller Lepidoptera in 
sealed containers in my home refrigerator for temporary 
preservation, so as to simplify final mounting when convenient. 
The method described was applicable to species which do not 
adapt ideally to the common practices of ‘“‘papering” or 
pinning in the field for later preparation. Many of the smaller 
moths do not spread well when some time has elapsed between 
papering or pinning and relaxing. The freezing method, 
with later refinements, may be of interest to entomologists 
who collect more smaller moths during a collecting trip or 
night at the trap than can be set immediately and conveniently. 

The procedure reported in 1974 was a simple one. 
Specimens which should receive identical locality labels were 
packed together after collection in wide-mouthed screw-top 
bottles or layered between loosely fitting discs of absorbent 
cotton (cotton wool) or similar material. Pertinent data were 
written on or affixed to the containers, and if some time 
would occur before freezing, chlorocresol crystals were intro- 
duced temporarily (and later re-used). Very small specimens 
were not layered, and I suggested that chlorocresol was hardly 
necessary if the insects would be frozen promptly and thawed 
for mounting within a reasonable time. 

The containers were (and still are) stored in the freezing 
compartment of a refrigerator. Cardboard cartons can be 
wrapped in aluminium foil to maximise retention of moisture, 
as with frozen foods. I had kept Noctuidae frozen for many 
months and, upon opening the containers, the specimens 
thawed very quickly, were perfectly relaxed, and appeared 
as fresh as when killed. The practice is ideal for entomologists 
who have little time for mounting, as the carton, may be 
removed from the freezer individually and their contents 
thawed as occasion permits. As I suggested in 1974, even the 
collector who captures relatively few specimens will find the 
method useful if he does not wish to attend to mounting the 
next day, and students of certain other orders may want to 
adapt freezing to their own needs. 

Since that time, it has become apparent that unless 
carefully managed, the use of chlorocresol to retard drying 
of specimens (described by Tindale, 1961; actually published 
in 1962), is optimally effective only on brief excursions. In 
my own experience and that of others who have used the 
chemical, the beneficial effects of chlorocresol are sometimes 
negated due to accident in the field or lenght of temporary 
storage with inadequate sealing. Those who would use chloro- 
cresol, preliminary to freezing or not, would do well to ensure 
that their specimens are stored in very tightly sealed metal 
or plastic containers. (Of course, on long expeditions, the 


ie American Museum of Natural History, New York, New York 
24 


274 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


usual early morning ritual of spreading smaller specimens is 
undoubtedly the safest method, if carriage of mounted speci- 
mens on boards is available.) 

My further experiments in freezing for much longer 
periods without chlorocresol have achieved good results, 
keeping in mind that retention of moisture is a vital factor 
in reducing somatic distortion. I formerly suggested the use 
of cardboard cartons for freezing, and although these have 
continued to prove adequate for short periods, loss of moisture 
through the porous cardboard has led me to the use of plastic 
containers for longer use (or always wrapping the cardboard 
containers in aluminium foil, or tying them securely in plastic 
bags of the market variety). Using these methods I have 
frozen Noctuidae without chlorocresol in my refrigerator as 
long as a year before thawing and setting, and the results 
have been satisfactory, although of course no preservation 
method can hope to approach the setting of a freshly collected 
moth. The present method offers an alternative to the busy 
collector, if the suggestions are closely followed. Very careful 
sealing and wrapping also reduce the possibility of the for- 
mation of ice crystals inside the container. 

In my 1974 paper I suggested that students of orders 
other than the Lepidoptera might wish to experiment with 
freezing their specimens in home refrigerators. Since that 
time, although not a student of those orders, I have frozen 
insects in plastic containers from the Odonata, Hemiptera, 
Coleoptera, some Hymenoptera, Orthoptera and Diptera for 
periods of many months with satisfactory results, although 
Ephemeroptera and some Odonata (such as damselflies) did 
not survive well. These latter results are hardly conclusive, 
and various investigators will wish to attempt trials of their 
own. 


References 


Tindale, N. 1961. The chlorocresol method for field collecting.J. Lepid 
_ Soc. 15: 195-197. 
Wilkinson, R. 1974. Freezing Lepidoptera for temporary storage. Great 
Lakes Entomol. 7: 8. 


OBSERVATIONS ON THE CYPRUS PUG: EUPITHECIA PHOENI- 
CEATA RAMBUR AT ALDWICK Bay, WEST SUSSEX. — This species 
is plentiful in this area and appears to be increasing. It has a 
long emergence period from early June to late October, but 
appears in greater numbers from late July to late August. In 
1976, it was first seen on 28th May, but in 1977 not until 
24th June in which year it was last observed on 16th October. 
In 1979 first seen on 12th June and last on 19th October; and 
in 1980 the first appeared on 6th June and the last on 14th 
October. The records show that the greatest number seen on 
any one night was 11 on 3rd August 1979. These records are 
based on moths noted at a 125 watt m.v. lamp or specimens 
found on lamp posts. — R. R. PICKERING, 123 Manor Way, 
Aldwick Bay, Bognor Regis, West Sussex PO21 4HN. 


21S 


Notes on Helops caeruleus L. (Col.: Tenebrionidae) 
By A. A. ALLEN, B.Sc., A.R.C.S.* 


It is perhaps not widely known that this very local, rather 
large and striking, dark blue beetle still flourishes here and 
there in the south-east suburbs of London, where a suitable 
spot can be found. However, in order to gain some idea of 
the numbers present in such a habitat — typically a rotten 
log, hollow tree, or some stumps — it must usually be sought 
after dark, or about dusk at the earliest, at which time the 
beetles become active. During the day they tend to be very 
retiring, apparently burying themselves deep in the rotten 
wood in which they develop, or secreting themselves in some 
other way. Even under loose bark one seldom finds more than 
an occasional specimen — or such is my experience. 

In a densely built-up part of Lower Charlton (about the 
last place where one would think of entomologizing) there is 
a narrow, unfrequented and (fortunately) neglected lane on 
one side of which some portions of trunks and stumps of elm 
long dead have thus far escaped the over-zealous attentions 
of the local authority. Among them is a large stump and part 
of a prostrate trunk, both well rotted, the latter containing 
a populous colony of undersized Dorcus parallelipipedus L. 
Digging in this log one day last spring yielded no other beetles, 
until a tell-tale fragment of a Helops caeruleus turned up 
(unmistakable by its colour) and later a solitary Helopine 
larva which from its medium size might have belonged to the 
common Cylindrinotus laevioctostriatus Gz. These slender 
clues indicated a nocturnal visit to the spot as possibly worth- 
while, for which a warm cloudy night towards the middle of 
May was chosen. 

I would not have been surprised to see a few specimens, 
but was hardly prepared for the numbers revealed by the 
light of my torch. The next night there were even more. In 
some places the log was almost studded with these handsome 
beetles, most sitting motionless but a few moving about in a 
very deliberate and leisurely fashion. Towards one end, on 
an area of about a square foot which included a flat sawn-off 
surface, I counted no less than two dozen. At no time could 
any be seen to be engaged in feeding, and indeed there was 
no algal growth such as the closely allied C. /aevioctostriatus 
is known to browse upon. Only one mating pair was observed 
— the main breeding-season may well be later in the year. 

These insects when handled exhale a peculiar heavy but 
not altogether unpleasant odour, similar to that produced by 
Cylindrinotus, probably Blaps, and the common earwig; it 
doubtless renders them distasteful to predators. Handling also 
results in brown stains on the fingers, not removed by hot 
water and soap but wearing off in some 6-12 hours, and 
leaving no untoward effect on the skin. 


* 49 Montcalm Road, Charlton, London SE7 8QG. 


276 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


Size variation seems much less than in C. laevioctostriatus. 
Colour, too, varies but little, the only common departure 
from the norm being a violaceous tint in 20-30% of the 
specimens — the fore parts, however, always remaining blue. 
The most deviant example is more distinctly bicolorous, with 
elytra presenting in most lights, especially when viewed from 
a little behind, a purplish-bronzy hue not unlike that of (e.g.) 
Rhynchites cupreus L. or some individuals of Apion limonii 
Kirby, but darker. A second specimen shows a near approach 
to this coloration. 

Previous records in this district are Greenwich (Fowler, 
1891, Col. Brit. Isl., 5: 25, and one in the park by J. Burton, 
1952); Woolwich (Bedwell, in Fowler & Donisthorpe, 1913, 
ibid., 6: 296); Abbey Wood and Charlton (taken by my friend 
A. W. Gould, and in the former place by me also, very 
sparingly in rotten stumps in Lesnes Woods). I first came 
across the species at the end of June 1933 in some small 
numbers crawling on a beech log in Arundel Park at dusk. 
It is sometimes found in decaying field-posts or palings in 
open situations near the sea; I have met with it in these 
conditions in the Thames Estuary area and near Rye Harbour. 

The British distribution of H. caeruleus — from Plymouth 
and both sides of the Bristol Channel in the west and along 
the south-coastal belt up to Norfolk in the east — is clearly 
governed by proximity to the coast and, more especially, to 
the estuaries and tidal reaches of the larger rivers’. The latter 
circumstance accounts for the inland localities; thus, it 
extends up the Thames as far as London (where it seems to 
have been almost general on the south side, cf. Fowler I.c.) 
but not beyond. There appears to be no record for a wholly 
inland county apart from London itself, Middlesex (Chiswick), 
and Surrey (Barnes); the last two localities are, of course, on 
the Thames and form part of the metropolitan cluster of 
records. As a northern outlier of these, Epping Forest alone 
does not quite fit into the above pattern. The insect seems rare 
there or else extremely local, and is not among the beetles of 
the Forest listed by Buck (1955), though there is an old record 
(Fowler, /.c.) and a recent one, I believe unpublished. I never 
encountered the species during the nine years when I was 
collecting in the adjacent Lea Valley area. 


* Another wood-feeding Heteromeron with a similar type of distribution, 
but ranging more widely, is Nacerdes melanus L. (Oedemeridae). 


DaAyY-FLYING LEPIDOPTERA AT MERCURY VAPOUR LIGHT. — 
During the past few years I have taken single specimens of 
Thamnosphecia culciformis L. and Choreutis myllerana Fab. 
in my m.v. trap at Southsea. It is interesting to speculate 
whether day-flying species other than migrants really do fly 
at night sometimes; or whether in early morning sunshine 
they may be attracted to a mercury-vapour light which had 
not yet been switched off. — Dr. J. R. LanGMarp, 38, Cumber- 
land Court, Festing Road, Southsea, Hants. 


217 


Argynnis paphia L. and Limenitis camilla L. in the 
New Forest in 1941/42 


By the Rev. J. N. Marcon* 


Two years ago Major-Genral C. G. Lipscomb wrote of 
an ‘explosion’ of Argynnis paphia, when thirty-five varieties 
were secured. It may be of interest to give some details of a 
similar ‘explosion’ in the New Forest in 1941/42. Few if any 
collectors who witnessed this are still alive, and thus able to 
compare it with what took place more recently. 


Sudden expansion of Lepidoptera, indeed of all insects, 
occurs in many species at rare intervals. Mr. R. M. Craske 
tells of such in Strymon w-album in 1941, of Thecla quercus 
and Lycaenopsis argiolus in 1944. It did so with Silver-washed 
Fritillaries and White Admirals in 1881, again in 1918/9, in 
1941/42, and as General Lipscomb records locally in 1976/77. 


Differences can be drawn for the number of captures in 
that three collectors were at work in the recent ‘explosion’, 
whereas in the New Forest in those two years I know of 
twelve; possibly there were more. Moreover two woodland 
areas were successfully hunted in 1976/77, whereas in the 
New Forest they nearly all came from Dames Slough, Oakley 
and Roe Wood Enclosures in 1941, and from the large Park 
Hill, Pignal areas in 1942 (little being found the second year 
in the earlier places, or the later places the first year). This 
suggests the curious feature that variation was local. 


1976 is remembered as an exceptional summer, nothing 
like it known before, sunny from mid-April to end-August, 
thus exceeding all previous records. This may be one of the 
reasons for the greater evidence of practically all butterflies 
in that and the following summer than for the past two 
decades. It was a year too when a number of rarities appeared 
on these shores — Nymphalis antiopa were seen, a Lampides 
boeticus caught, an Argynnis lathonia photographed. The 
previous winter was not exceptionally severe, as was the case 
in 1917/18 and 1939/40. But an important factor operated 
in these two, namely the onset of World Wars, which limited 
the usual trimming of rides and the cutting of brambles. 


The New Forest has been visited in July every year from 
1923 to 1943 (save for two summers in India). None were so 
prolific in varieties as 1941/42. An occasional one might have 
been caught in the intervening period — especially in Limenitis 
camilla — but it was a great rarity. How does this 1941/42 
‘explosion’ compare with what occurred in a smaller area in 
the more recent 1976/77 period which General Lipscomb 
records? 

Not every capture can be enumerated, but most collectors 
were spoken to in one or other of the several enclosures 
visited. Furthermore a letter from the late Mr. Castle Russell 
together with the notes made at the time suggest a fairly 
* Raydale, Fittleworth, Pulborough, Sussex. 


278 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


comprehensive tally. This is substantiated by checking those 
varieties now held by Mr. Watson of Boldre and Mr. Smart 
of the Saruman Museum. 

In 1941 four days were spent in the middle of July and 
after a short gap another three: the excitement of the first 
period being so intense as to necessitate a start on the second 
at 5.30 a.m. on a motorcycle from Eastbourne. 

Mr. Russell and Col. Burkhardt, being on the spot, col- 
lected every available day and, he (Russell) says, there was 
not one which did not produce a variety of some sort. He 
records over a score of good paphia vars. and some sixteen 
nigrina or semi-nigrina. My own score was nine paphia — 
two ocellata, one ater, six confluens — and five camilla vars. 
In addition Mr. Tetley took three paphia var. confluens; Mr. 
Clarke a pair of ocellata, a confluens and a semi-nigrina 
camilla; Mr. Johnstone an ocellata paphia and a nigrina 
camilla; Mr. Turner a paphia var. nigricans, three confluens 
and a valesina var. glomerata; Mr. I. Farwell one ocellata 
and one confluens; Mr. C. Farwell an ocellata; Mr. Jackson 
a post-confluens; and Mr. Watson a camilla var. nigrina and 
a var. obliterae. 

In 1942 I enjoyed thirteen days there. Numbers were 
somewhat fewer, but up to the average of most seasons. In 
consequence the total number of varieties was fewer, though 
some taken may not be in my records. Little was found in 
the previous years enclosures; all captures were centred round 
one large stretch of woodland. In both years Island Thorn, 
the favourite resort of Russell and the venue of many col- 
lectors most years, was out of bounds, being used for training 
by the Armed Forces. 

I have no record of Mr. Russell and Col. Burkhardt’s 
captures (noted together as they went to Mr. Russell) other 
than of two paphia var. nigricans, two confluens and one 
camilla nigrina; Mr. Tetley had to his credit a paphia var. 
confluens and a rare gynandromorph largely ¢ with a smail 
patch of valesina on both forewings. Mr. Turner caught a 
paphia var. nigricans and Mr. Jackson a post confluens paphia. 
The count that fell to me was six paphia one ocellata, one 
ater, four confluens — and four camilla varieties. This tots 
up for the two years to sixty-five paphia vars. and thirty-one 
camilla. Vintage years indeed! 

I do not know how many were caught sight of but never 
captured: no doubt a few were missed and some not seen. 
Mr. Russell spoke of a lovely @ paphia seen in ‘middle’ 
Oakley, forewings with a few spots — appearing almost totally 
fulvous — and hindwings black; it got up as he approached 
and flew down the ride. He shouted to Burkhardt, who waved 
his net at it, unsuccessfully; it was never seen again, though 
they hunted the area for the rest of the afternoon. Mr. John- 
stone also caught a Maniola jurtina var. atrescens at the 
opening of Park Hill and said he had missed a ‘black’ Poly- 
gonia c-album: that too escaped the human predator! 


ARGYNNIS L., LIMENITIS L. IN NEW FOREST, 1941/42 279 


With the aid of a motorcycle one was able to move 
around, but a near catastrophe parking it in one ride was 
the discovery on returning to find it on its side, with precious 
petrol leaking out! On another occasion a bit of bracken 
caught a paphia var. ocellata as it was being netted (my 
stupidity and excited carelessness), chipped out a small frag- 
ment of wing, which took ten minutes of search over a Six 
inch square of grass to discover! So ended two memorable 
trips with a satisfying result! 

Bug-hunting is a fascinating hobby, though the years of 
plenty recede behind us, nor does the future look promising. 
Nevertheless the delight and recreation of walking the woods 
and downs and capturing some of the beauty and expanse of 
nature, even though the capture of our quarry is now of much 
rarer occurrence, is a thing of joy for which we can always 
be thankful. 


GAINSBOROUGH’S MISTAKE.—I went recently to the 
Gainsborough exhibition at the Tate Gallery and was much 
interested to see picture no. 22 . . . Gainsborough’s young 
family chasing a butterfly. We have caught out the painter 
in this, however, for he has depicted a dead female Pieris 
brassicae L., and moreover he has killed his model by 
pinching! The butterfly is upside down with the upperside 
partly showing. I have written to the gallery and I hope they 
do not find any more models in rigor mortis! — Canon P. C. 
Hawker, St. Botolph’s Vicarage, Lincoln LN5 8EW. 


RHYACIA SIMULANS HUFN. AND OTHER INTERESTING LEPI- 
DOPTERA AT A NORTH WARWICKSHIRE SITE. — Regular trapping 
using a 6W 9V actinic lamp at Woodlands Quarry, Hartshill, 
near Nuneaton has produced several records of Rhyacia 
simulans Hufn. These are: 1978: 12th August, one ; 13th 
August, one; 19th August, one; 4th September, three; 6th 
September, one. 1980: 13th August, one; 15th August, one. 

Woodlands Quarry, and SSSI on account of the rare Lyo- 
lithid fossils found within a limestone band, also produces 
frequent records of Gnophos obscuratus D. & S., Larentia 
clavaria Haw. and Eremobia ochroleuca D. & S. Spaelotis 
ravida D. & S. has occurred, with one trapped on 13th 
September 1980. 

The adjacent Hartshill, Hayes, a predominently sessile 
oak wood with a wide variety of other trees and shrubs, 
including much small-leaved lime and occasional wild service 
tree ,also contains much of interest. Abraxas sylvata Scop. 
is still present in some numbers despite the ravages of Dutch 
elm disease. Bena prasinana L. and Drymonia ruficornis Hufn. 
are occasionally trapped and Cosmia pyralina D. & S. came 
to light in August 1977. A survey of Macro-lepidoptera 
carried out at Hartshill by the writer over the past four years 
has shown that over 250 species occur. — R. J. Tuomas, 23, 
Trentham Road, Hartshill, Nuneaton, Warwicks. 


280 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


On The Status of a Little Known Satyrid 
Butterfly from Greece 
By J. Brown, F.R.E.S.* 


Pseudochazara cingovskii Gross has been reported rather 
infrequently from Southern Jugoslavia and Northern Greece 
(Gross, 1973; Koutsaftikis, 1974; Brown, 1976). Nevertheless, 
further collecting trips to the peaks of the extensive massif 
of Mt. Smolikas, not far from the Albanian frontier of Greece, 
suggest that this butterfly occurs in many widely scattered 
colonies in this area. In fact, comparison of the more extensive 
series of Greek P. cingovskii which is now available with the 
description of the nominate form from Jugoslavia (Gross, 
1973) suggests that the Greek insect reperesents an as yet 
undescribed taxon. 


Pseudochazara cingovskii tisiphone ssp. nov. 


Male Upperside similar to that of Hipparchia semele 
cadmus Fruhstorfer but forewing with prominent white ocelli 
in S 3, 4 and two white-pupilled ocelli in S 2, 5. Hindwing 
with small white-pupilled ocelli in S 2, 3 and often 4. Dark 
marginal borders 2-3 mm. wide on all wings. Fringes grey, 
tipped white. Ground colour dark brown and sex brand indis- 
tinct. Well defined and usually fulvous, although sometimes 
dirty yellowish, postdiscal band variably dusted brown on 
hindwing and broken along veins by ground colour especially 
along v4 of forewing. Forewing length 25-29 mm. Underside 
ground colour dusky orange-brown or dirty yellow. Well 
marked discal line on forewing. Base of forewing uniform 
grey. Cell with one cell bar, which is continued vaguely to 
inner margin of wing. Hindwing irrorate with fine darker 
markings, especially marginally. Traces of a pale postdiscal 
band occur after the vestigeal grey discal and postdiscal lines. 
Often a white submarginal ocellus in S 3. 

Female. Similar but larger, forewing lengths 28-29 mm: 
postdiscal markings more pronounced. 

Holotype & : Mt. Smolikas, Greece, 1200 m., 7.vii.1975. 
J. Brown leg. et coll. 

Allotype ? : data as for holotype but 27.vii.1978. 

Paratypes: 6 o, 29, data as for holotype but 7.vii.1975- 
27.vii.1978. 

The holotype has already been illustrated (Brown, 1976: 
figs 10 & 11; male genitalia figs 4 & 5). 

P. c. tisiphone flies over rough stoney places at altitudes 
of about 1200 m. For the present, it is known only from Mt. 
Smolikas. Interestingly, the male of this insect seems to have 
two distinct forms, the one with fulvous and well marked 
postdiscal bands, and the other and rarer with yellowish post- 
discal bands more obscured by a suffusion of the dark ground 
colour. Both of these forms can be caught flying together, 
and this phenomenon may prove to be an example of poly- 
morphism unusual for the genus Pseudochazara de Lesse. 

* 7 Chiltern Road, Sutton, Surrey. 


STATUS OF LITTLE KNOWN SATYRD BUTTERFLY, GREECE 281 


P. c. tisiphone can be distinguished from P. c. cingovskii 
by its darker ground colour and usually deeper fulvous bands 
on the upperside, and by the densely irrorated underside of 
its hindwing, which has a strongly reduced discal line and 
postdiscal band. P. c. cingovskii was initially described as a 
subspecies of Satyrus sintenisi Staudinger by Gross, using 
specimens from a colony near Prilep in Southern Jugoslavia. 
This insect falls into group 2a of the division of the genus 
Pseudochazara according to androconial pattern, and within 
this group it has now been accorded specific status (Brown, 
1976). In the light of our present knowledge, then, a distance 
of only about 80 miles separates the Jugoslavian population 
of cingovskii from that on Mt. Smolikas. Nevertheless, it is 
interesting to speculate on the relationship of P. c. cingovskii 
to its rather different Southern cousin. Despite the geographi- 
cal proximity of the Jugoslavian and Greek mountain colonies, 
the Pindos range, of which Mt. Smolikas is a Northern peak, 
is significantly isolated from the higher mountains of Jugo- 
slavian Macedonia to the North-East by the low plain extending 
from the Southern tip of Lake Ohrid on the Jugoslavian- 
Albanian frontier towards Kalambaka some one hundred miles 
further South in Greece. This separation seems to be reflected 
in a considerable endemic faunistic element for the area, a 
point which has already been touched upon (Brown & 
Coutsis, 1978). For example, P. amymone Brown seems 
confined to the Northern Pindos of Greece, whereas P. 
geyeri Herrich-Schaffer has never been recorded from Greece 
but is only to be found in the higher mountains around Lake 
Ohrid. As a result it is perhaps not unprecedented that P. c. 
tisiphone should be so different from P. c. cingovskii despite 
the fact that the two populations appear so closely situated. 
Indeed, it is difficult to say how far the differences between 
these two allopatric taxa go towards establishing two separate 
but allied species, and the clarification of this last point must 
await material of Jugoslavian cingovskii being made more 
freely available for study than in the past. 


References 


Brown, J., 1976. A Review of The Genus Pseudochazara de Lesse 
1951 in Greece. Entomologist’s Gaz., 27: 85-90. 

Brown, J. & Coutsis, J. G., 1978. Two Newly Discovered Lycaenid 
Butterflies from Greece, with Notes on Allied Species. Ento- 
mologis’s Gaz., 29: 201-213. 

Gross, F. J., 1973. Satyrus sintenisi auch in Europa nebst Beschreibung 
einer neuer Unterart. Ent. Z. Frankf. a. M., 83: 211-214 

Koutsaftikis, A., 1974. Recent Butterfly Records from Greece. Ento- 
mologist’s Rec. J. Var., 86: 15-17. 


= HOLES HE GEo 


282 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


Brief Encounter; 
How a Dragonfly made our Day 


By CHARLES F, COWAN* 


In June 1960 I stumbled upon the classic locality of the 
‘“‘rare’’ dragonflies Somatochlora arctica and Aeshna caerulea, 
securing good photographs of the male of the latter which 
started my collection in the order Odonata. 

In early July 1968 I made a quick tour of part of mid- 
Scotland, to look for signs of A. caerulea outside its few 
listed localities and to try to snap its female. On a brisk 
forenoon the cold was tempered by frequent spells of bright 
sunshine as I explored the upper reaches of a tributary of Glen 
Spean. The common Cordulegaster boltonii was patrolling a 
small lochan just west of the track and I soon saw A. caerulea 
on the heathery knolls east of it. In no time, I had her 
portrait. Camera in hand and still on knees, I relaxed only, 
to my acute embarrassment, to see that I was being watched 
by a young couple out for a walk. 

The usual greetings had, perforce, to include an expla- 
nation of my peculiar pursuit and were followed afterwards 
by the shout ‘“‘There’s a huge one here! ’’. It would be Cordu- 
legaster, of course, but the sun had gone in again so, wet 
knees notwithstanding, I went over and was told ‘“‘behind that 
bush’. It was not quite cool and, on a hunch, I went round 
the bush, saw the insect, and gently insinuated my fingers 
under its feet. I came from behind the bush. ‘‘Eek! ” she cried. 
“Don’t move quickly, or you'll frighten it’? I said: “It’s only 
the Great Golden-ringed Dragonfly’. ‘‘But doesn’t it sting?’’. 

So, while its life-history, habits and food were briefly 
explained (“Look at its meat-safe under the wings’), the 
majestic insect was quietly transferred to her fingers from 
mine, with the remark that in earlier times there existed 
species with wings over a foot long. It seemed as interested 
in us as we in it, and before long was making a magnificent 
brooch. 

Then the cloud cleared the sun. We moved to shelter it 
from the breeze; it revved-up its wings and soon lifted gently 
away. “Oh, thank you so much; you’ve absolutely made my 
day” she said, and with those parting words she made mine. 

But really it was all due to the dragonfly. 

*4 Thornfield Terrace, Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria, LA11 7DR. 


NEw LOCALITIES FOR COLEOPHORA PRUNIFOLIAE DOETS 
IN 1980. — This recently discovered Coleophorid seems to be 
present in more localities than at first imagined. I have col- 
lected the pre-hibernation cases from Fobbing Marsh in Essex, 
and from the renowned Pevensey Levels in East Sussex; the 
latter constitutes, a first county record. — M. Haptey, 19-20 
Belgrave Square, London SW1X 8PY. 


283 


A Comparison of the Heath and Robinson M.V. 
Moth Traps 


| By P. WARING* 


Introduction 

It is now fifteen years since the introduction of the Heath 
light trap for collecting moths. The trap has several important 
advantages over the standard Robinson moth trap. These 
have been outlined by Heath (1965). Chief of these advantages 
is that the trap can be operated from a 12V car battery while 
the Robinson trap requires a mains supply or generator. The 
cost of the equipment required to trap moths in a site where 
a mains supply is unavailable is thus considerably reduced. 
The trap itself retails at about half the price of the Robinson 
trap which now costs in the region of £60.00. 

As a result of the portable nature of the Heath trap and 
the financial considerations involved, professional entomolo- 
gists running a series of traps and amateurs equipping them- 


Total numbers of Macro taken 


Date per trap per night 
Robinson trap Heath trap 
(125W M.V.) (6W Actinic) 
Series 1 Site 1 Site 2 Site 1 Site 2 
June 20/21 — 77) 38 — 
June 22/23 91 — — 34 
June 24/25 — 18 10 — 
June 26/27 89 — — 50 
June 28/29 — 173 30 == 
June 30/July 1 62 — — 57 
Geometric means 79.49 82.00 2251 45.93 
Overall Geom mean 
for series 80.72 B2N5 
Series 2 Site 1 Site 3 Site 1 Site 3 
July 18/19 — 363 74 = 
July 20/21 70 — — 70 
July 22/23 — 213 52 == 
July26/27 437 a= — 140 
July /28/29 — 336 66 — 
Aug. 11/12 342 138 


: Geometric means 218.70 296.10 63.33 110.60 
Overall Geom mean 


for series 254.5 83.68 
Series 3 Site 1 Site 3 Site 1 Site 3 
Aug. 14/15 — 76 20 = 
Aug. 17/18 121 — —_ 83 
Aug. 19/20 — 257 31 = 
Aug. 21/22 35) _ —_ 17 
Aug. 23/24 — 31 9 — 
Aug. 25/26 55 — — 24 
Geometric means 62.53 84.61 17.74 32.35 
Overall Geom mean 
for series 72.14 23.95 
[cea nese i wien ee Me 
TABLE 1 


Total numbers of Macrolepidoptera taken in Robinson and Heath traps per night. 
* Park Farm House, Banbury Road, Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1AH. 


284 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


selves for their hobby are showing considerable interest in the 
Heath trap as an alternative to the Robinson trap. 

I myself acquired a Heath trap specifically as an aid to 
investigating the moth fauna of local nature reserves where 
a convenient mains supply is not always available. Being 
familiar with the catches obtained at the Robinson trap with 
a 125W M.V. bulb, I found it difficult not to compare the two 
types of trap. Heath (1965) states that the catch of macro- 
lepidoptera is 56% and the number of species 68% of that in 
a Robinson trap fitted with a 160W blended M.V. lamp. Many 
nights the catches in my Heath trap seemed very low indeed, 
far below those to which I was accustomed, and various 
colleagues have related similar experiences. This prompted 
me to run a series of experiments to compare the performance 
of the two traps in a quantitative way for myself, and the 
results are contained here. 


Numbers of species of Macro taken 


Date per trap per night 
Robinson trap Heath trap 
(125W M.V.) (6W Actinic) 
Series 1 Site 1 Site 2 Site 1 Site 2 
June 20/21 _ 44 DD. — 
June 22/23 30 — = 22 
June 24/25 _- 10 7 => 
June 26/27 29 — — 21 
June 28/29 — 43 17 — 
June 30/July 1 2] — — 20 
Geometric means 28.64 26.65 13.78 20.98 
Overall Geom mean 
for series 27.63 17.00 
Series 2 Site 1 Site 3 Site 1 Site 3 
July 18/19 — 53 21 — 
July 20/21 29 = — 18 
July 22/23 46 18 = 
July 26/27 60 = -- 32 
July 28/29 _ 62 19 = 
Aug. 11/12 50 — — 721 
Geometric means 44.31 53.27 19.30 22.96 
Overall Geom mean 
for series 48.59 21.05 
Series 3 Site 1 Site 3 Site 1 Site 3 
Aug. 14/15 = 12 9 — 
Aug. 17/18 24 — — 20 
Aug. 19/20 — 32 14 = 
Aug. 21/22 17 == — 9 
Aug. 23/24 = 11 5 aa 
Aug. 25/26 19 —- = 11 
Geometric means 19.79 16.16 8.57 12.56 
Overall Geom mean 
for series 17.88 10.38 
——————— 
TABLE 2 


Numbers of species of Macrolepidoptera taken in Robinson and Heath traps 
per night. 


COMPARISON OF HEATH & ROBINSON M.V. MOTH TRAPS 285 


Experimental Procedure 


Both traps were used in the form in which they are 
commercially available, and in which I imagine most entomo- 
logists operate them. The Robinson trap was supplied by 
Messrs. Watkins & Doncaster, Four Throws, Hawkhurst, 
Kent, and fitted with a 125W MB/U lamp; while the Heath 
trap was supplied by Entech Services, 46 Mersey View, Liver- 
pool, L22 6QB, and was fitted with a 6W Actinic 5 tube. Both 
units were operated from the mains, the Heath trap employ- 
ing a control unit for AC mains operation also available from 
Entech Services. 


(A) 
Geometric mean number of Heath Geometric mean catch as 
Macrolepidoptera taken percent of Robinson Geometric 
mean catch 

Series 1 Robinson Heath 
80.72 32.15 39.83% 

Series 2 Robinson Heath 
254.50 83.68 32.88% 

Series 3 Robinson Heath 
72.14 23.95 33.30% 

Mean of above results 
% 
(B) 
Geometric mean number of species Heath Geometric mean as percent 
of Macrolepidoptera taken of Robinson Geometric mean 

Series 1 Robinson Heath 
27.63 17.00 61.53% 

Series 2 Robinson Heath 
48.59 21.05 43.32% 

Series 3 Robinson Heath 
17.88 10.38 58.05% 

Mean of above results 
4.30% 
TABLE 3 


Comparison of the number of individuals and number of species of Macro- 
lepidoptera taken by Robinson and Heath traps, based on the geometric means 


of the catches. 


The experiments were conducted in Wytham Wood, 
Oxfordshire. Since two traps cannot be run on the same night 
on the same site. allowances have to be made for differences 
in nights and trap location. Using two similar sites the traps 
can be run on the same night and by swapping the traps 
around every second night — preferably a night similar to the 


286 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 
first —the effect of differences due to site can be evened out. 
One trap-free night was allowed between each trap-night and 
the next, to allow the moth population some time to recover 
from disturbance of distribution that may be caused by the 
traps. 

Three series of experiments were performed, each con- 
sisting of six trap-nights. In the first series, one site was a 
small glade by a single house in mixed deciduous woodland, 
with a large proportion of silver birch and an understorey 
of bramble and willowherb. The other site was mainly sur- 
rounded by beech. However, in the second and third series, 
the second site was moved to another glade similar to the 
first, but far enough away so that the two traps were screened 
from each other by bushes and trees, and the light from one 
trap was not visible from the other. 


Degrees of Total Mean Percent 
Freedom Variance Variance Contribution to 
Total Variance 
in Data 

Series 1 Nights 5 0.837294 0.167459 55.43 
Position 1 0.078389 0.078389 5.19 
Traps 1 0.479553 0.479553 Siler) 
Residual 4 0.115189 0.028797 7.63 
Total 11 1.510425 

Series 2 Nights 5 0.409027 0.081805 31.72 
Position 1 0.104786 0.104786 8.13 
Traps 1 0.700036 0.700036 54.28 
Residual 4 0.075697 0.018924 5.87 
Total 11 1.289546 

Series 3 Nights 5 0.936740 0.187348 51.96 
Position 1 0.119600 0.119606 6.63 
Traps 1 0.687822 0.687822 38.14 
Residual 4 0.059029 0.014757 3.27 
Total 11 1.803191 

TABLE 4 


Analysis of variance of the size of catches at the traps in Series 1, 2 and 3. 


Results 

The number of individuals and the number of species of 
macrolepidoptera taken at the traps in the experiments des- 
cribed above are given in tables 1 and 2 respectively, and in 
each case the geometric means are used for the comparison 
of the two traps as recommended by Williams (1951), see 
table 3. 

To find out how much of the variation in the number of 
moths taken at the traps each night could be attributed to 
the differences in the two traps, rather than to differences in 
the nights of sites, an analysis of variance was performed, the 
results of which are presented in table 4. This shows that 
while the variance due to the site is small, changes in the 
nightly conditions account for a large amount of the total 


COMPARISON OF HEATH & ROBINSON M.V. MOTH TRAPS 287 


variance in the data. The differences between the two types 
of trap are significant, being a 5% level in series 1 and 1% 
level in series 2 and 3. 


Single Site Experiment 


Many entomologists are in the habit of running a moth 
trap on a regular basis at a single site in their garden, and it 
is on the results of this experience that many base their 
opinions of trap performance. Alternating two different traps 
on one site has the disadvantage that the traps are never 
run on the same night, although the site is always the same. 
Comparison of the traps is aided if the traps are run on pairs 
of consecutive nights, so that night-time differences are 
minimised, although as already mentioned, there is the possi- 
bility of some carry-over effect from one night to the next 
with this method, depending on where the catches are released 
with respect to the trap. In Williams’ experiment, there was 
no evidence of a carry-over effect (Williams et al., 1955). 
If the traps were switched on just after dusk, this would 
allow at least a little time for some free movement of the 
local moths to and from the site before the trap was operated. 

This experimental approach was followed in a subsidiary 
series of experiments at my own garden site, using the same 
two traps from the main set of experiments. The 4-acre garden 
site is bordered on one side by houses, and on the other three 
by farm meadows with hawthorn hedgerows. 

The results from fourteen pairs of nights, together with 
a brief description of weather conditions on each night, are 
presented in table 5. On the fourteen pairs of nights, the 
Robinson trap follows the Heath trap on eight occasions. 
Comparing the geometric mean catches for the two traps as 
in the previous experiment, the Heath trap took 38.77% of 
the number of moths taken by the Robinson trap, and 55.84% 
of the number of species. It is interesting that figures are so 
close to the results of the first experiment, despite the difference 
in experimental procedure. 


Discussion 


As shown, my estimates of the relative performance of 
Heath trap with the Robinson trap, fall below those given 
by Heath in every case, both for numbers of moths and 
numbers of species. It must be pointed out that there are 
several differences in our experiments. Most importantly, 
while I have used traps as they are commercially available 
today, Heath used a i60W blended M.V. lamp in the Robinson 
trap. Heath’s results are based on twelve nights of trapping, 
but he unfortunately gives no information on the sites used, 
the size of the catches obtained or the time of the year at 
which he was trapping, all of which may contribute to the 
differences in our results. 


288 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


My results are from June to September, the height of the 
mothing season, but from my personal experience I have 
found that while the Robinson trap is certainly capable of 
‘pulling them in’ on what are generally reckoned to be ‘good’ 


Date Weather Robinson trap Heath trap 
(Date of (125W M.V.) (6W Actinic) 
morning ee 

following trap 
night in Number | Number | Number | Number 
question) of moths | of species | of moths | of species 

June 9 15—12.5°C XSD —— = 14 4 

10 15—12 °C XSD 85 25 — — 

12 16— 9 °C XSD 80 22 — = 

13 16—12."C-XSD — — 50 13 

22 16— 8 °C XSD — —_ 22 11 

23 14— 9.5°C OSD 73 22 — — 

24 13—10 °C XSR — — 36 16 

25 13— 9.5°COSR 21 8 — — 

26 13— 7 °COSD = — 12 8 

27, 13— 9.5°C XSD 92 27 — — 

28 14-10 °C XSD — — 13 9 

29 15.5—13°C XWD 15 22 _ — 

30 12—11.5°C XSD — — 37 17 

July 1 13—10 °C XSD 64 24 — — 

6 22—14 °C XSD — — 86 30 

7 19—13 °C XSD 183 34 — — 

19 17—13.5°C XSD 217, 38 — — 

20 17—13 °C XSD = = Th 25 

oH 17—13 °C XWD 163 a2 — — 

22 15—10 °C XWD — — 52 23 

Aug. 1 14—13 °CXWR — — 25 10 

2 14-13 °C XWR 72 19 —- — 

31 17—11 °C XSD 236 38 — — 

Sept. 1 17—15.5°C XSD _— — 151 19 

5 13— 9 °COSD 123 22 — — 

6 15— 9 °COSD — — 32 9 

8 17—10 °C XSD 1S 23 — — 

9 18—15 °C XSD — — 101 18 
Geometric means 97.63 23.98 37.85 13539 

TABLE 5 
Results of Single Site Experiment. 
Weather Key: O=clear sky S=still D=dry 
X=cloudy W=windy R=some rain in 
(more than light night 


breeze) 


COMPARISON OF HEATH & ROBINSON M.V. MOTH TRAPS 289 


nights, the catches vary in size from night to night much 
more than with the Heath trap. If I had been able to perform 
my experiments earlier in the year, say April or May, I think 
it is likely that estimates of the relative efficiency of the Heath 
trap might have been higher than those given. 


Conclusion 


From my experiments, I estimate that the standard Heath 
trap catches on average 35% of the number of moths and 
54% of the number of species taken by the standard Robinson 
trap in the sites and conditions I have described. For myself, 
this result has the practical consequence that whenever I am 
examining the moth fauna of new areas, or when time is 
restricted, I will try and run a Robinson trap whenever pos- 
sible. But as Heath points out, the Heath trap is a genuinely 
portable M.V. light trap, and can be operated in many sites 
and on many occasions where a Robinson trap is out of the 
question. 


References 


Heath, J., 1965. A genuinely portable M.V. Light Trap. Ent. Rec., 
77: 236-238. 

Heath, J., 1966. A Comparison of the catches obtained in insect traps 
fitted with 15 watt and 6 watt ‘Blacklight’ fluorescent tubes Ent. 
Rec., 78: 222-223. 

Williams, C. B., 1951. Comparing the efficiency of insect light traps. 
Bull. ent. Res. 42: 513-517. 

Williams, C. B., et al., 1955. A second experiment on testing the 
relative efficiency of insect light traps. Bull. ent. Res. 46: 193-204. 


Book TALK THREE. — As an aid to quick identification 
of most of the British macro moths, the coloured illustrations 
in the early printings of Richard South’s Moths of the British 
Isles are probably unsurpassed. Published by Warne in two 
pocket-sized volumes, the work first appeared in 1907-08 and 
contains 1,543 figures mostly reproduced from coloured 
photographs of set specimens from the collection of W. F. 
Warne. The blocks from which these plates were printed 
were used repeatedly for successive impressions over the next 
40 years, resulting in later printings becoming somewhat 
blurred owing to wear, so that the earlier the issue that one 
can obtain of the book the better. Each impression is identi- 
fiable by the publication date printed on the reverse of the 
title-page, though an early copy in my possession, in which 
the plates are virtually as fine as those of the first impression, 
is for some unknown reason undated. In 1961, Warne pub- 
lished a third edition with new plates, but unlike the true to 
nature illustrations of the previous editions, these consist of 
figures reproduced from paintings and are by comparison 
generally poor and unrealistic. — J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT. 


290 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 
Some Interesting Finds of Overwintering Insects 


By ANTHONY WOOTTON* 


The potentialities of peeling tree bark for the discovery 
of hibernating insects are well known to entomologists. I 
myself have had some of my best finds in such situations, but 
two made in January 1980, in the neighbourhood of Stone, 
in Buckinghamshire, must surely be considered outstanding. 

The first occurred on January 4th (at map ref. SP 773129). 
Having prised off the loose bark of a large felled elm, among 
several stacked for disposal at the edge of a field, I noticed 
a single ant-beetle (Thanasimus formicarius (L.)) wandering 
sluggishly over the exposed wood. Then, to my astonishment, 
I discovered a whole cluster of these attractive red, black and 
white beetles grouped close together near the cut end of the 
tree trunk. I collected twelve in all, taking them home for 
the purposes of closer study and photography. An interesting 
development was that, when exposed to light and a certain 
measure of (room) warmth, several of the beetles began to 
copulate and to run about at a speed typical of the species in 
summer, although when kept cool all returned to their hiber- 
natory position, pressed close into the fissures of the piece 
of bark provided. 

I have found ant-beetles, always singly, only once or 
twice before locally. One I watched in late August 1978 ran 
rapidly up and down the trunk of a sapling elm and its 
branches, systematically examining twigs, leaves and bole. 
Never before have I found them in numbers and never hiber- 
nating. It is also of interest that all the literature I have had 
recourse to mentions the species as being found only on conifers. 
Presumably the greater incidence of bark beetles (on which 
T. formicarius preys), associated with Dutch elm disease, has 
contributed to an extension of the species’ distribution onto 
elms. Readers’ comments on this would be welcome. 

My second unusual find occurred on January 6th 1980, at 
the edge of a local deciduous wood (SP 773128), predominantly 
of elm, beech, horse chestnut, sycamore, etc. A young friend, 
Ralph Woodward, and I were examining the bark of a small 
felled elm when my companion spotted the larva of a snake- 
fly (Raphidia sp.) in a small cavity beneath the bark. He did 
not recognise it for what it was, but assurance as to its 
importance led to his discovery of two more, and I myself 
found two. I can count on the fingers of one hand the number 
of adult snake-flies I have seen locally over about 30 years’ 
observation, so the revelation of five larvae within a few feet 
on one dead elm must surely be an event worthy of record! 
Incidentally, have any readers managed to rear species of this 
fascinating group? (I have since done so. — A. W.). 


Some other insect hibernators . 
As a postscript to the above, it may be of interest to 


40 Roundhill, Stone, Near Aylesbury, Bucks HP17 8RD. 


SOME INTERESTING FINDS OF OVERWINTERING INSECTS 291 


mention some of the other insects I have found locally in 
similar situations. They include: 

Xestobium rufovillosum (De G.) (death-watch beetle) 
(under bark of willow, near pond); Carabus granulatus L. 
(ground-beetle) (common singly under bark; group of five 
once found beneath oak bark); Pyrochroa serraticornis (Scop.) 
(cardinal beetle) (beneath elm and other bark); Chrysolina 
(Chrysomela) polita (L.) (leaf-beetle); female Acheta domesti- 
cus L. (house-cricket) (beneath isolated log in wet meadow); 
unpigmented (ecdysed) final instar Forficula auricularia (L.) 
(common earwig) (beneath hawthorn bark). 

Dwellings and other buildings, too, are not without 
interest for overwintering insects. Only recently (November) 
I found a Philaenus spumarius (L.) froghopper, resting in a 
comatose state above my outside shed door. Indoors, one is 
always of course liable to find lacewings, ladybirds and 
vanessid butterflies. In October 1978 I encountered something 
rather more surprising: a fine specimen of Dermestes larda- 
rius L. (bacon or larder beetle) on the wall of the gentlemen’s 
convenience of a local Chinese restaurant. Perhaps I should 
have reported it to the local health authority! 


Postscript 

Since writing the above, I have done much further elm- 
bark investigating, which has resulted in the discovery of 
many more TJ. formicarius, as well as four more Raphidia 
(probably maculicollis) larvae, three of the latter from the 
same disease-affected elm which produced the five mentioned 
previously. (Three of the Raphidia were located by my young 
friend R. W., whose discerning eyes are invaluable for insect- 
spotting! One of them, a minute specimen only one-third of 
an inch long, found beneath a tree stump, astonished us both 
by its extremely efficient powers of reverse-locomotion involv- 
ing looper-like doublings of the abdomen.). 

I am now even more convinced that insects like these are 
becoming commoner and more widespread as a direct result 
of Dutch elm disease. It may be that the ant-beetles are 
attracted primarily by fungus-eating beetles, such as Endo- 
mychus coccineus (three of which I found beneath elm bark 
on March 17th) and, in particular, Mycetophagus quadripustu- 
latus, which is exceedingly common locally on diseased elms. 
Certainly, when I introduced a number of M. quadripustu- 
latus to my ant-beetles (many of which appear to be gravid 
incidentally) they were quickly reduced to eviscerated abdo- 
mina, wings and elytra! It was fascinating to watch the way in 
which the fungus-eaters were seized and carried away to be 
consumed under cover. 


292 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


The Mystery of the Orange Tip Butterfly 
By ALBERT G. LONG* 


I have written elsewhere (Ent. Record 91: 16, 42, 158) 
of the return of the Orange Tip Anthocharis cardamines L. 
to the south of Scotland and northern England in recent 
years (1969-78). As a result of this article further records have 
been received and these seem to be of sufficient interest to 
merit mention and comments. 

In the above article I did not mention the fact that further 
north in Scotland the Orange Tip staged an even earlier come- 
back than in the Borders. This was described by Commander 
G. W. Harper in Ent. Record 66: 59, where he stated that in 
Strathspey the Orange Tip remained unrecorded from 1860 
until May 1953 when several males were taken at Boat of 
Garten, Aviemore, and Kingussie. Why should this resurgence 
of the species occur earlier in the north of Scotland than in 
the south? What factors could have influenced this increase? 

In 1978, Miss G. A. Elliot reported that Orange Tips 
appeared in Aberdeenshire at Kildrummie and Crathes Castle 
and at one of these sites a comment was made that their 
appearance was the first in 25 years. 

Another interesting report came from J. L. Campbell of 
Canna House, Isle of Canna under date 12.4.79. Mr. Campbell 
wrote “I was interested to read your article about the return 
of the Orange Tip in the Scottish Borders. I don’t know if 
you see the News bulletin of the British Butterfly Conservation 
Society; a recent number contained an article about Argyll 
by a person who went there to see C. palaemon last summer. 
Quite casually he mentioned seeing a specimen of the Orange 
Tip in one of the woods. 

I have never seen any record of A. cardamines from 
Argyll, though one would think it might easily occur in some 
of the old native woodlands there”’. 

Mr. John Mitchell of the S.W. Scotland regional Nature 
Conservancy Council wrote to say that in the summer of 1977 
Orange Tips were seen on the wing in a water-meadow near 
Westerton, Doune by Mr. David Thomson. This site is north 
of Stirling and in VC 87 (West Perth). 

In East Lothian, Orange Tips have been observed in the 
Pencaitland area by Mr. P. Summers so confirming the reports 
by Mr. R. W. Barker. Mr. George Waterston has likewise 
seen specimens in his garden at Humbie. His first sighting 
was on 22.6.1977 “four in the air at one time in the front 
border” and again in 1978 and 1979. 

In Midlothian, Mr. K. I. Ransome saw about 6 males 
along approximately 1 km length of the River Esk (NT 37) 
on 2.6.1979; this confirms the record of Miss M. J. Long 
on 19.5.1979. 

In Berwickshire, Mr. M. E. Braithwaite reported Orange 
Tips at Gordon Moss on 10.6.1979. Two were also seen there 


* Hancock Museum, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ORANGE TIP BUTTERFLY 293 


on 17.6.1979 by Mr. P. Summers, who also saw one by the A7 
three miles north of Galashiels on 19.6.1979. 


In a personal communication from Mr. M. E. Braith- 
waite (Tweed Branch Scottish Wildlife Trust) he reported that 
Mr. W. Davidson of Kelso recorded Orange Tips at Makerston 
25.5.1977; Roxburgh Castle 27.5.1977; Lochton, Berwickshire 
20.5.1978; and Makerston 17.6.1979. 


Dr. C. B. Williams of Kirkcudbright YC 73 wrote date 
5.11.1979, ‘“We have seen several of them in the 8 years that 
I have been here but they do not appear to be common.” 


In Northumberland the increase has been widespread. 
Mr. David G. Burleigh of Longframlington reported the 
butterflies in that village in 1977, 1978, and 1979. Mrs. P. 
Henzell of Elyhaugh Farm saw the butterflies near the R. 
Coquet, just in VC 68 in 1977 and 1978. 


In Durham Mr. T. C. Dunn reported large numbers of 
Orange Tip caterpillars mostly fully grown on the Northern 
Naturalists’ Field Meeting to the river banks at Wolsingham 
on 14.7.1979. The larvae were on the seed pods of Alliaria 
petiolata. 


Since coming to live in Ponteland in 1968 I personally 
never saw an Orange Tip locally until 20.6.1979 when one 
appeared in my garden at Cheviot View. Since then I have 
heard of one being observed in the same neighbourhood in 
1978. The last known record for Ponteland was in 1930. In 
Newcastle the Orange Tip re-appeared in 1976 when it was 
seen on 27th May at Close House by Mr. D. A. Sheppard. 
In 1978 it was seen on 2nd July at the Gosforth Park nature 
reserve by Mr. M. Walker and again on 13.6.1979. It was 
observed at Wylam on Tyne by Mr. T. M. Martin on 
16.5.1978. North of Ponteland about six were seen near 
Millbourne by Mr. R. M. Wilcock during June 1978, and in 
1977 one ovum was seen on Alliaria by Mr. P. Summers at 
Wallington on 26th June. 


The last previous record for the Newcastle area I can 
find appears to have been for Plessey Woods (NZ27) on 
26.5.1865 by A. M. Norman so that its absence or scarcity 
spanned 111 years. Previously it had occurred commonly on 
the Ponteland road as recorded by John and Albany Hancock 
in 1826 and 1827. 


Perhaps the most interesting communication I have 
received came from Professor Eric Lees of Bradford University. 
He attributes the increase of the Orange Tip to later emergence 
leading to more successful breeding and thinks this has resulted 
from a fall in the mean temperature in April during the past 
decade. 

If this theory is correct could it also explain the earlier 
resurgence of the butterfly in Invernesshire in 1953 before 
that in the Scottish Borders and northern England? 


294 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


A new species of Poecilmitis Butler (Lepidoptera: 
Lycaenidae) from the Western Cape Province 


By C. G. C. Dickson* and G. A. HENNING** 


No. 51 

Both sexes of this striking member of its group were 
found by Dr. Jonathan B. Ball on the Kammanassie Mountains, 
E.S.E. of Oudtshoorn, in the South Western Cape Province, 
on 9th and 14th December, 1978; while a few further speci- 
mens were secured there on 3rd February, 1979. It is believed 
that two females of a Poecilmitis which were captured on 
these mountains by Dr. C. B. Cottrell on 22nd December, 1969, 
may have answered to the female of the present insect. These 
specimens were referred to by the first writer as the possible 
female of Poecilmitis daphne Dickson, in Entomologist’s Rec. 
J. Var. 87: 227 (1975) — a conjecture which was found to be 
incorrect after Dr. Cottrell had secured at a later stage the 
true female of P. daphne. These specimens are no longer 
available for comparison — but it must be admitted that, 
from a short description made at that time, they diverged in 
some respects from the known females of the present insect 
and could have been those of a P. nigricans (Aurivillius) -like 
butterfly, a male of which Dr. Cottrell caught there sub- 
sequently. The present species is a decidedly distinctive rep- 
resentative of its group and can be separated immediately 
from P. daphne by its greater average size, and, in the male, 
and amongst other features, the absence in all specimens 
of dark scaling bordering outwardly the brilliant metallic 
silvery-blue area of the forewing, and the presence of orange 
spaces in the cilia which in the great majority of specimens 
extend slightly on to the actual wing surface. The distal 
margins tend to be somewhat dentate, if not markedly so and, 
from material seen so far, distinctly so in comparison with 
the feamle of daphne. The male, anyway, differs decisively 
from the males of other, allied species. 

Poecilmitis balli spec. nov. 

Upperside. 

Ground-colour bright orange-red; the silvery-blue in the 
forewing of the male not as extensive as in the males of many 
of the other taxa of the group — as, for instance, in P. thysbe 
(L.) itself — this also applying to the extent of the dull greyish- 
blue in the forewing of the female of the present species. 

Male. 

Forewing. Silvery-blue reaches end of cell but leaves a 
space of orange-red colouring, which varies in size, in outer 
part of cell. (In one paratype, there is only the barest trace 
of this orange-red marking.) Blue then enters, or may just 
enter, the inner, angular part of area 2, extends downwards to 
the black marking in area 1b if this is present (and which in 
some cases it actually obliterates) and finally reaches inner- 


* “Blencathra”, Cambridge Avenue, St. Michael’s Estate, Cape Town. 
** 1, Lawrence Street, Florida Park, Florida, Transvaal, South Africa. 


NEW SPECIES POECILMITIS BUTLER, W. CAPE PROVINCE 295 


margin at a point approximately two-thirds of distance along 
its length, from wing-base. A blue to violaceous-pink lustre 
extends for a certain distance beyond the solid blue area, over 
the orange-red portion of the wing, though chiefly in areas 
1 and 1b. The usual black spotting of the thysbe group is 
clearly developed. Black distal border of moderate width, or 
somewhat broad in some specimens. Cilia black, or nearly 
so, at vein-ends, with white interruptions and usually with 
adjoining orange-red spaces inwardly, and this colouring 
normally just intruding on to the wing-surface itself (in one 
very small paratype and in other occasional specimens, it has 
not done so). 


Hindwing. Outer edge of blue area forms a generally 
fairly even curve which reaches end of cell and, after meeting 
the basically dark greyish inner-marginal concavity, extends 
partially down the concavity, mainly in the form of light blue 
hairs. A shifting lustre extends, as in forewing, over a portion 
of the wing — but it is more widespread in the hindwing. 
The black spotting, of the thysbe type, is generally mainly 
small and not completely developed. About outer third, or 
two-fifths, of area 7 frequently but not always filled in with 
brownish-grey scaling. In some specimens there is a linear 
black edging along roughly upper-half of distal margin. Cilia 
with white spaces between the dark portions at end of veins, 
diminishing in clarity below approximately middle of distal 
margin — otherwise largely orange, althongh not so at end 
or area 7, where dark portions of the cilia adjoin the vein- 
ends, as is the case to some extent elsewhere also. 


Underside. 


Forewing. Very similar in general to that of P. thysbe 
(L.). In some examples, anyway, the black spotting tends, as 
a whole, to be smaller than in the male of thysbe. Some of 
the individual spots are very pronouncedly steely-centred. 
Dark streak parallel with the distal margin clearly developed 
and sometimes broadened. Cilia mainly brownish- or orange- 
ochreous, with narrow white divisions (which extend acutely 
on to the wing-surface); the cilia terminally largely black, 
like the distal portion of the veining itself. 


Hindwing. Pattern basically that of thysbe; the silvery 
liturae clear and fully developed and the darker marking of 
the wing prominent. General ground-colour varying from 
fawny-ochreous to, often, a rufous tone and one much richer 
in that usual in thysbe; the dark marking, dark brown (some- 
times almost black in places) to warm orange-brown or 
ferruginous — the darkest parts of this marking occurring 
chiefly in the inner-third of the wing and in a curved zone 
beyond middle. Cilia fowny-ochreous, mixer partly with dark 
brown or sometimes blackish, and with narrow white or 
beyond middle. Cilia fawny-ochreous, mixer partly with dark 
brown or black. 


296 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


Length of forewing: 14.0-15.5 mm. (14.5 mm. in holo- 
type). Two abnormally small males have a forewing measure- 
ment of only 12.0 and 12.5 mm. respectively. 

Female. 

Forewing distally rounded with only a suggestion of 
‘“‘elbowing”’ one-third of distance from apex. Blue from wing- 
bases dull and devoid of the strong shifting lustre present in 
the male (as is in fact usual in this group). 

Upperside. 

Forewing. The dull blue comparatively restricted and 
either not, or hardly, reaching costal margin; its outer margin 
forming a not sharply defined irregular curve which may be 
in contact with a small dark spot in cell (when this spot is 
present, as in the allotype), and which terminates at its lowest 
point almost half-way along innermargin. The black spotting 
of orange-red area is mostly well developed, the black distal 
border tending to be broader than in the majority of male 
specimens (rather noticeably so in the allotype). Cilia with 
only the slightest trace of orange at base of white divisions 
and no orange on adjoining wing-surface. (The margin tends 
to give a more dentate impression than in the male.) 

Hindwing. Blue of much the same extent as in male, 
apart from its outer margin meeting the inner-marginal 
concavity at a lower point than in most male specimens. 
The dark marginal line more continuous than in male. Cilia 
with the dark portions decidely prominent and the white spaces 
as a whole more noticeable, with orange colouring less in 
evidence. 

Underside. 

Forewing. As in male in all essentials. Spotting inclined 
to be a little heavier. 

Hindwing. As in male. 

Length of forewing: 15.5-16.25 mm. (the latter measure- 
ment, in holotype). 

Body and ancillary parts, in both sexes, very much as in 
P. thysbe, with perhaps more darkening in places, as in vicinity 
of head. 

o Holotype, WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE: Kamma- 
nassie Mountains, 14.xii.1978 (Dr. J. B. Ball). 

2 Allotype, W. CAPE PROVINCE: data as for holotype, 
3.xi.1979 (Dr. J. B. Ball). Dr. Ball has wished to present the 
holotype and allotype to the Transvaal Museum, Pretoria. 

Paratypes in Coll. Dr. J. B. Ball: data as for holotype, 
9.xii.1978, one o; 14.xii.1978, two od’, one 2; 3.ii.1979, two 
od (J..B.B,) 

Paratype in Coll. British Museum (Nat. Hist.), WESTERN 
CAPE PROVINCE: Kammanassie Mountains, 3.ii.1979, one 
o (Dr. J. B. Ball); British Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18692. 

Paratypes in Coll. W. H. Henning: as holotype, 14.xii.1978, 
two dic’. 

Dr. Ball had suggested, tentatively, that the present butter- 
fly was nearest to P. endymion Pennington (1962, J. ent. Soc. 


PLATE XIX 


NEW RACE ARGYROCUPHA MALAGRIDA, W. CAPE PROVINCE 297 


sth. Afr. 25 (2): 274); however, it appears to be closer in 
certain respects to P. pyramus Pennington (1953, idem 16 (2): 
105), which inhabits the nearby Zwartberg Range and, on 
the upperside, tne male is rather surprisingly similar to 
specimens of P. thysbe from the Cape Agulhas-Arniston area 
of the South Western Cape — although readily separable 
from these by the reduced silvery-blue areas, generally broader 
distal margin of the forewing with less orange in the cilia 
and on the wing-margin itself, as well as certain other features. 
The female is also easily distinguishable on the upperside 
from that of specimens from the above area, by means of the 
characters listed in the main description; while the undersides 
of both sexes exhibit clear distinguishing characters. The 
orange-red ground-colour of the upperside is a little richer 
than in P. endymion but not quite as rich as in P. pyramus. 

The discovery of another new species of the P. thysbe 
group as distinct as the present one and within a tract of 
country that had already received a fair amount of attention 
from the butterfly point of view, is certainly of much interest. 
The writers have much pleasure in naming this beautiful 
insect after Dr. Jonathan B. Ball, in recognition of his un- 
bounded enthusiasm in searching for butterflies in many 
likely, promising areas in the Cape and elsewhere in Southern 
Africa. When referring to one of his trips on which P. balli 
was caught, Dr. Ball has stated in a letter of 19th February, 
1979: — “TI went again to the range on 3.2.79, walked con- 
tinually from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., went up every peak and also 
explored the highest slopes. I found only four specimens 
and like the other specimens found earlier they flew either on 
the summits or within 200m. [656 ft.] of the highest points. 
The males enjoy resting on the dry flower-heads of a grass. 
Two female specimens were both found flying around a very 
prickly Composite plant. I did not see them laying eggs, but 
this could be the food-plant.”’ 


A new race of Argyrocupha malagrida (Wallengren) 
(Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) from the Western Cape 


Province 
By C. G. C. Dickson* and W. H. HENNING** 
No. 52 

The discovery of a new race of the above butterfly, at a 

low altitude near the sea, was most unexpected; this being 
PLATE XIX 

Poecilmitis balli spec. nov.: fig. 1. @ holotype (upperside); fig. 2. 
6 holotype (underside); fig. 3. 2 allotype (upperside); fig. 4 2 allotype 
(underside). 

Argyrocupha malagrida maryae subsp. nov.: fig. 5. @ holotype 
(upperside); fig. 6. ¢ holotype (underside); fig. 7. 2 allotype (upperside); 
fig. 8. 2 allotype (underside). 

Figures natural size. Note: The blue in P. balli is more violaceous 
than indicated in figure. (Colour reproduction by Unifoto (Pty.), Ltd., 
Cape Town). 


* “Blencathra’’, Cambridge Avenue, St. Michael’s Estate, Cape Town. 
** 1, Lawrence Street, Florida Park, Florida, Transvaal, South Africa. 


298 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


especially so when it is considered that the locality, Struys 
Bay, near Cape Agulhas, lies approximately 92 miles S.E. of 
the nearest known habitat (the Paarl Mountain) for any other 
race of Argyrocupha malagrida (Wallengren). Much credit is 
therefore due to those who found the present race, in 
February, 1977, and thus threw such interesting fresh light 
on the distribution of the species as a whole. A description 
of this race follows hereunder. 

Argyrocupha malagrida maryae subsp. nov. 

Average size of both sexes seems greater than in closest 
allied race at least from material available for comparison 
(comparisons being made with Argyrocupha malagrida cedrus- 
montana Dickson & Stephen (Entomologist’s Record J. Var. 
87 (5): 129-132 (1975), to which race the greatest affinity 
seems to be apparent). Forewing of the male more evenly 
rounded along distal margin, without any sign of “elbowing” 
some distance below apex. 

Male (Upperside). 

Forewing. Orange-red colouring more extensive outwardly, 
thus leaving a narrower distal black border than in the other 
race; the orange-red forming a subapical ray, divided into 
two small portions by the dark scaling of vein 6. A distinct 
small orange-yellow marking at end of cell, which intrudes 
into lower portion of the broad dark costal border. Most, or 
much, of costa bordered or edged with light, rather fawn 
colouring. 

Hindwing. Orange-red also more extensive in this wing, 
than in other race, leaving a narrower black distal border 
and with some extension upwards into the apical portion of 
the wing, as far as vein 6. Furthermore, the orange-red 
colouring forms a streak within the dark portion of the wing 
adjoining the slight inner-marginal concavity which, in itself, 
is lighter than in the other race. There is, in all specimens 
that have been observed, some diffuse dark scaling across the 
more inner portion of the orange-red area. 

Cilia, especially in the forewing, with more prominent 
white spaces and with the white, in most of the spaces, clearly 
extending on to the wing-surface itself, on this wing. 

Underside. 

Very similar to that of m. cedrusmontana, allowing for 
the usual variation in individual specimens of this group. 

Forewing. Spotting in orange area more conspicuous, as 
a whole, than in other race. White spaces in cilia rather more 
prominent and tending to extend further inwards. 

Hindwing. Some of the silvery markings tend to be 
broader or generally larger than in the other race — including 
the basal mark immediately below the costa and that im- 
mediately beyond the cell. The deeper marking in this wing 
is perhaps more consistently dark than in cedrusmontana. 

In this insect as in other races of Argyrocupha malagrida 
the background to the apical area of the forewing underside 
and much of the hindwing underside, including the veining, 


NEW RACE ARGYROCUPHA MALAGRIDA, W. CAPE PROVINCE 299 


is of a more reddish or even vinous tone in some specimens, 
than in others, in which a fawn-brown tone may predominate. 

Length of forewing: 15.25-15.75 mm. ((the latter measure- 
ment, in holotype). 


Female (Upperside). 

Orange or orange-red ground-colour more extensive, in 
all wings, than in male and, judging by available material, 
less reddish in tone. The cilia, though interspersed with quite 
pronounced white spaces, have these spaces less pronounced 
than in the male. The well rounded distal margins of the 
forewings of the female are no more rounded than in the 
male, in this race. 


Underside. 

From the specimens examined, the silvery marking of 
the forewing is reduced, in general, in comparison with that 
of the male, as is at least part of that of the hindwing, with 
the lighter background to the wing more extensive and of 
an ochreous (somewhat orange-ochreous) tone. The dark 
marking contrasts more clearly and gives a different over-all 
impression than in the male. 

Length of forewing: 15.75-18.0 mm. (the latter measure- 
ment, in the allotype). 

Body and ancillary parts very much as in cedrusmontana. 

3o Holotype, WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE: Struys 
Bay, nr. Cape Agulhas, 22.11.1977 (I. Bampton); British 
Museum Reg. No. Rh. 18693. 

@ Allotype, W. CAPE PROVINCE: data as for holotype 
(Mrs. Mary Smith); British Museum Reg. Rh. 18694. 

Paratypes in Coll. C.G.C.D.; data as for holotype, one o, 
one ? (I. Bampton); one ¢& (Mrs. M. Smith). 

Partypes in Coll. W. H. Henning: data as holotype, 
twelve o'c', two 22 (I. B.): five go five 92 (Mrs. M. S). 
(Specimens from the finally-listed series wil be presented to 
the Transvaal Museum, Pretoria.) 

In preparations of the male genitalia of nominate malagrida 
and maryae a few small differences were apparent. In the 
latter, for instance, the tegumen was dorsally almost straight 
when viewed from the side, but, in the nominate race, with 
a small rounded protuberance before the juncture with the 
uncus; the saccus had a distinct downward curvature at its 
extremity, instead of remainig horizontal; and the valva was 
slightly but distinctly concave ventrally, in the lateral view, 
instead of being slightly convex, as in the nominate race. 
As only a single preparation was made in each case it is 
not known if these small differences would occur consistently 
in the taxa concerned. (The male genitalia of two members 
of the group were figured by Dickson and Stephen (1975) 
(op. cit)). 

In a statement pertaining to the habits, etc., of this 
butterfly Mr. Bampton has remarked, inter alia:— ‘The 
insect was first found on a patch of burnt vegetation situated 


300 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


at the base of a steep rocky hillside. There were several rock- 
outcrops and one or two rocky ridges and it was in these 
areas that all my specimens were captured. Males were fairly 
common but they had to be “‘put up.”” Females were, however, 
uncommon and were only seen when flying among the outcrops 
or along the sides of the ridges.” 

After her close, initial association with this insect, it is 
being named appropriately, and with pleasure, after Mrs. 
Mary Smith. 


Practical Hints 


During the last half of March, larvae of the Beautiful 
Gothic (Leucochlaena oditis Hb.) can be found after dark in 
their cliff haunts on the south west coast. They are grass 
feeders, preferring Sheep’s Fescue, particularly where this 
grows around the bases of large boulders giving shelter. How- 
ever, larvae also occur in the wild on Couch Grass growing 
on grassy banks. The larva is a consistent rust-brown colour 
with blackish marks on each side of the body. Head pale 
brown marked with two black streaks. Some larvae of the 
Square Spot Rustic (Xestia xanthographa D. & S.) which can 
be quite large at this early time of year, may be distinguished 
easily from those of L. oditis by the presence of dorsal lines 
and ochreous or brown spiracular stripe, all features absent 
from odites. From about the 16th to the 24th of March is 
best for the full grown larva of oditis. Later on only odd 
larvae may be found (Platts). 

Many Micros pupate in or under bark and should be 
provided with something similar when kept in captivity. The 
old books recommend ‘cork’ or ‘rotten willow’. I never seem 
to come across this kind of thing. Balsa-wood is a perfectly 
satisfactory alternative and can be bought in packs of 
assorted shapes and sizes from almost any toy shop. Cut it 
into suitably-sized pieces and bore holes in one side only; I 
use a screwdriver with a 2” blade (W. A. C. Carter). 

Setting-boards for Micros are costly and not always 
suitable; in these days of D.ILY. it is perfectly possible to 
make one’s own. Strips of balsa-wood 1” wide by 2” thick are 
readily obtainable at toy-shops. Length is a matter of prefer- 
ence but 12” or 13” is recommended. Glue the strips to 2” 
ply-wood and plane off the edges of the latter flush with the 
sides of the balsa. The groove should be %” wide and about 2” 
deep. The best way to cut this is with a circular saw but it 
could, no doubt, be cut with an Exacta knife. The groove can 
be lined with polyporos but this is not essential. The paper 
must be smooth, thin, white and opaque — it is best obtained 
from a firm of printers which generally has a wide selection 
to choose from. Use a water-soluble paste to stick the paper 
to the board and, to avoid wrinkles and creases, ensure that 
the paper is well soaked before it is applied — as is done 
when paper-hanging. (W. A. C. Carter.) 


301 


Current Literature 


A Field Guide to The Butterflies of Britain and Europe by 
L. G. Higgins and N. D. Riley. 4th Edition (Revised). 
Collins, 1980. £7.95. 

Since its original publication in 1970 this Field Guide, 
the first comprehensively illustrated handbook to the butter- 
flies of the Western Palaearctic region, has become the vade 
mecum for lepidopterists all over Europe. In recent years a 
number of interesting discoveries have been made, particularly 
regarding Lycaenidae in south-east Europe and the latest 
edition has been completely revised and reset and contains 
details of all these species along with three new colour plates 
(Pls. 22, 23 and 59). 

Changes in nomenclature have also occurred. Some of 
these are confusing, especially with regard to the two species 
formerly considered as mountain and low-level races of 
Euchloe ausonia Hb., but fortunately this particular case is 
discussed and clarified in the preface. 

The introduction in the new edition has been shortened 
to cater for the additional text and the guide to collecting and 
collecting methods has been omitted. As this is information 
that can easily be obtained elsewhere, the loss is of small 
importance, but one suspects that it is actually more of a 
concession to the current disfavour toward collecting rather 
than a necessary abridgement. 

The augmented text remains, as another reviewer has put 
it, ‘‘a masterpiece of semi-coded compression” but the three 
additional plates, I am sorry to report, are simply unworthy 
of the rest of this fine book. To realise the crudity of plate 22 
in particular, one only has to turn back one page to compare 
the Agrodiaetus species. The deterioration in standard is all 
too plain and one gets the impression that the artist, having 
painted a vast number of lepidoptera of one sort or another, 
has rather tired of the subject. The other new plates are 
marginally less disappointing but there is still a roughness 
which is absent from Brian Hargreaves’ previous work for 
this book. 

Following the insertion of the new illustrations, the plate 
numbers have altered from previous editions, Unfortunately 
this has resulted in several errors —in the case of Hamearis 
lucina (page 94) for example, there are four plate references 
in the text and only one is correct. The co-author, Dr. L. G. 
Higgins, received no prior copy before the first printing of 
this edition and was therefore unable to correct these mistakes. 

An important feature of the guide is the series of distri- 
bution maps, and these have been revised to include fresh 
information on the range of some species. There is also a 
vastly improved index of scientific names. The specific and 
sub-specific names are listed in small type, synonyms in italics 
and the generic names in capitals but all in strict alphabetical 
sequence. In previous editions an unwieldy system operated in 
which specific names were listed only under their own genus. 


302 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


In spite of the criticism, the new edition of this unique 
book is essential for anyone interested in European butterflies 
and at £7.95 is excellent value for money. — C.J.L. 


The Aphidoidea (Hemiptera of Fennoscandia and Denmark. 
1 General Part. The Families Mindaridae, Hormaphididae, 
Thelaxidae, Anoeciidae and Pemphigidae. By Ole E. Heie. 
Fauna Entomologia Scandinavica 9: 236 pp., 1980. 
This, the first of four planned volumes on Aphidoidea, 

contains an introduction to the taxonomy, morphology and 

biology of aphids (70 pp.), a key to the families of Aphidoidea 

(4 pp.) and keys to their subfamilies and tribes (6 pp.). The 

subsequent accounts of the subfamilies indicated in the title 

include keys to genera and species. For each species a concise 
description is followed by a summary of its geographical 
distribution and biology (125 pp.). Many of the species and 
most of the genera are illustrated by line drawings, as are 
the galls formed by the aphids. There are two coloured plates. 

The work is concluded by a tabulated summary of geographi- 

cal distribution (8 pp.), a bibliography of more than 300 

references and an index. The book is bound in the soft covers 

characteristic of the series. 
The introductory third, written in excellent English, is 

a masterly summary of current thought on aphid taxonomy, 

morphology and biology and will be required reading for all 

would-be aphidologists. The taxonomic part is mostly not 
original but a compilation and modification of the best ac- 
counts available in the widely scattered literature. Most of 
the species included occur in Britain and the line illustrations 
are almost uniformy good. The coloured illustrations, depicting 
the colours accurately enough, were obviously made from 
dead or anaesthetized specimens, as is so often the case with 
coloured illustrations of aphids. 

The author is to be congratulated on producing a valuable 
addition to aphid literature, likely to remain well used for 
many years. — V. E. EAsTop. 


Notes and Observations 


OSTRINIA NUBILALIS HUEBNER (LEP.: PYRALIDAE) IN THE 
City oF Lonpon. —I have not searched the literature for 
references to Ostrinia nubilalis later than the late Mr. 
Huggins’ account of colonies in the Southend area, but it 
may be of interest to record that from the overgrown area 
of Broad Street Station I collected dead stems of Artemisia 
vulgaris, from which several imagines of this species emerged 
during the second half of July 1980.—R. A. Sortty, 12 
Parliament Court, Parliament Hiil, London NW3 2TS. 


NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS 303 


NOTES ON LEPIDOPTERA IN THE ISLE OF MAN IN 1980. — 
Since the arrival of so many Cynthia cardui L. in June, this 
year has been disappointing. I was looking forward to an 
interesting Autumn brood, but only a few appeared. This 
situation seems to typify the Island. Migrant Vanessa atalanta 
L. for example, were more plentiful than usual earlier in 
the year but their progeny were quite scarce. 

All the usual common moths turned up in my trap in 
reduced numbers. However, on October 29th, I found a fairly 
fresh specimen of Lithophane ornitopus Hufn. (Grey Shoulder 
Knot), which does not seem to have been recorded before 
from the Isle of Man. Earlier, on July 25th, a very good 
male of the beautiful pyralid Pyrausta aurata Scop. was 
among the ‘catch’. This appears to be only the second record 
of the species from Man, the first being that of C. S. Gregson 
in 1893 (see Chalmers-Hunt, The Butterflies and Moths of the 
Isle of Man). 

Curiously, after the wettest and coldest summer ever 
recorded here by our local Met. Office, we had the most 
astonishing second brood of Lasiommata megaera L. They 
were literally swarming. As a mere collector, and although 
I have examples from all over England, I could not resist 
taking a really suberb series which were there for the asking. 

One always looks forward to early November when some- 
times Mythimna unipuncta Haw. (White-speck), Rhodometra 
sacraria L. (The Vestal) and Orthonama obstipata F. (The 
Gem) come here. This year nothing at all. In fact my total 
catch for the last three weeks has been one Autographa 
gamma L. (Silver Y) and one Erannis defoliaria L. (Mottled 
Umber). — JOHN HeEpGcEs, Ballakeighen, Castletown, Isle of 
Man, 19.xi.1980. 


THE COMMA: POLYGONIA C-ALBUM L. IN NORTH YORK- 
SHIRE. — At 9.30 a.m., on 2nd September 1980, I came across 
a fine specimen of Polygonia c-album L. basking in the sun- 
shine on an Elder bush in my garden, but it flew off as I 
approached. When I returned, at 1.30 p.m., it was feeding on 
buddleia and for several minutes, before it disappeared over 
the hedge, I was able to watch it at close range. I never saw 
it again, despite thorough, daily searching. 

In the 1940’s the species used to be frequent in this area, 
but in 1953 the last entry was made in the Scarborough Field 
Naturalists’ Society Lepidoptera Record Book. Very few have 
been seen anywhere in Yorkshire since that time. — P. Q. 
WINTER, West End Farm, Muston, Filey, N. Yorks., YO14 OES. 


THE PAINTED LADY (CYNTHIA CARDUI L.) IN NUMBERS AT 
LIGHT AND OTHER NOTES ON ITS OCCURRENCE NEAR FILEY, 
YORKSHIRE IN 1980. — On 7th and 28th June I saw single 
Cynthia cardui L. on the edge of fields near Muston and on 
13th July there was a very ragged specimen on the cliffs two 
miles south of Filey. 


304 ENTOMOLOGIST’S RECORD I/XI-XII/80 


The weather began cool, dull and foggy on 29th July, 
but it became warm and brighter in the afternoon: the mist 
persisting on a light breeze from the sea. At about 4.00 p.m. 
I noticed masses of Plutella maculipennis Curt.; so just before 
dark I erected an extra m.v. trap and then toured local street 
lamps in search of migrants. Nothing important was found 
and I returned home at midnight to look round the two traps. 
I was quite surprised to see one cardui sitting on the outside 
of my permanent trap and two or three battering themselves 
inside it. Several others were approaching and all these 
seemed in perfect condition. The second trap, 300 yards away 
in a slightly more enclosed situation, was atttracting many 
moths, but no cardui. When I came to the house, however, 
one was trying to reach the light inside the porch at the back 
door. Next morning the mist had cleared, though the atmos- 
phere was thundery. There was one cardui outside the static 
trap and nine inside, with one boxed during the night making 
a total of eleven. There were none at all in the other trap. 

During that afternoon I saw fifty or sixty cardui pass 
through the fields in a westerly or north-westerly direction, 
occasionally pausing to feed and then moving on. Migration 
seemed to have stopped by 3lst July, yet there were still 
between eight and twelve on most suitable thistle patches. 
They had ideal weather for just over a week, then it deterio- 
rated and the majority disappeared. Apart from one on 16th 
and another very worn one on 28th August, there were no 
others in the latter half of that month. A small, fairly fresh 
butterfly which came onto the buddleia in my garden on 2nd 
September was joined by another, of normal size, the following 
day and an obviously newly emerged specimen on 10th Sep- 
tember was the last I saw. 

I found the first cardui larva of the year on 30th July 
and a few more in the next week or so. Some appeared to be 
early second instar and others late third: a larger one resulted 
in an imago on 30th August. Small larvae, presumbly from 
the late July immigrants, were noted on 25th August and three 
days later eleven occupied webs were found on one rosette 
of Spear-thistle leaves. There were also many larva on nearby 
plants in September they could easily be seen on thistles 
everywhere. Conditions in October were generally very wet 
and cold, followed by frosts at the beginning of November, 
so it was assumed that all stages of cardui had perished. 

Purely by chance, on 19th November, an empty web was 
spotted and a brief search revealed two medium-sized larvae 
on adjacent Spear-thistles. One disappeared within a few days, 
but the other was still in its tent on 30th November, two 
days after a covering of snow. It had gone by 2nd December, 
however, when much of the plant had wilted in biting winds. 
— P. Q. Winter, West End Farm, Muston, Filey, North 
Yorkshire, YO14 OES. 


MICROLEPIDOPTERA PILOT RECORDING SCHEME 


This will be organised as one of the many national recording schemes 
supported by the Biological Records Centre at the Institute of Terrestrial 
Ecology. The group chosen for a ‘Pilot’ study will be the Oecophoridae. 
Subscribers who would like to participate upon the scheme should write 
to the organiser at the address below for the necessary recorders cards. 
Specimens requiring identification should in the first instance be sent to 
the scheme organiser. 


M. HADLEY, B.Sc., A.R.C.S., F.R.E.S. 


c/o NATURE CONSERVANCY COUNCIL 
19-20 BELGRAVE SQUARE, LONDON SWIX 8PY 


IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT TO 


ENTOMOLOGISTS 
* 
AUCTION SALE OF THE COMPLETE COLLECTION OF 
BRITISH MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES OF THE 
LATE DAVID LAURENCE COATS 
OF BIRNAM, DUNKELD, PERTHSHIRE 
comprising over ten thousand Moths and Butterflies (Lesser 
Emerald, Purple Hairstreak, Pine Hawk, Large Elephant, 
Scarlet Tiger, Homeosoma Nimbella, Straw Belle, Scotch 
Annulet, etc.), Notes, Data, Journals and Specimen Cabinets. 
ALSO A SMALL COLLECTION OF BIRD’S EGGS. 
* 
To be sold by Public Auction in March 1981 by 
Messrs. Ashby’s, Auctioneers 
8 Cresswell Lane, Glasgow 
* 
For details write to Mr. J. McArdle, LL.B., 57 West Regent 
Street, Glasgow G2 2AE or Telephone 041-332 0703/5402. 


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_ Ce Se EP 


CONTENTS 


British Pugs. Brig. E. C. L. SIMSON _... te Re Reds! 
Territorial Behaviour in British Butterflies. W. G. SHREEVES deen 
The Folklore of the Lepidoptera. G. F. Le PARD ... ae 270 
Further Observations on Freezing Insects for aca Driv ke S. 

WILKINSON we 273 
Notes on Helops caeruleus L. (Col: Tenebrionidae), A. ee pe 

LEN ea: Le ie 275 
Argynnis paphia L. and Bananite carrilts L. in ee Ney Bora in 

1941/42. Rev. J. N. MARCON _... Ee 277 
On the Status of a Little Known es Butter fee Greece. Dr. 

J. BROWN _... 280 
Brief Encounter: How a Dragonfly jade our Day. ‘Lt Col. (@ F. 

COWAN , 282 
A Comparison of the Heat at, Robinsdn MV. Moth Traps P. 

WARING beck 283 
Some Interesting Finds of Overunering Tasco A. WOOTTON . 290 
The Mystery of the Orange Tip Butterfly. Dr. A. G. LONG sist Oe 


A New Species of Poecilmitis Butler (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae) 
from the Western neti Province. C. G. C. DICKSON and G. 
A. HENNING 294 


A New Race of Meee ae ares Kana lle oa (hcwida peers 
Lycaenidae) from the Western Cape Province. C. G. C. DICK- 
SON and W. H. HENNING a ae ue on naa ONT 


Practical Hints ei Ph ane he te Jee a ae. 300 


Notes and Observations: 
Further Observations on the iaealknte manners oe: 


J. R. LANGMAID ee : rad =L 266 
Late Appearances, 1980, A. ARCHER-LOCK sae aes SOG 
Abnormal Abundance of Vanessa atalanta L. in S. Devon. 
Maj.-Gen. C. G. LIPSCOMB Me sia, ah Oe 
Observations on the Cyprus Pug: Eupithecia postcodes Ram- 
bur at Aldwick Bay. R. R. PICKERING ... “? 274 
Day-fiying Lepidoptera at ees Niraee mak Dry: R. 
LANGMAID ae she Bee eS 
Gainsborough’s Mistake. Guba P. c. HAWKER ane Boa ARS 
Rhyacia simulans Hufn. and Other Interesting eau in 
North Warwickshire. R. J. THOMAS eNO 
New Localities for Coleophora prunifoliae Deets in 1980. RAO 
Book Talk Three. J. M. CHALMERS-HUNT _.... 289 
Ostrinia nubilalis Hbn. (Lep.: barca in the oe of ‘ender! 
R. A. SOFTLY 302 
Notes on rane ae in nthe Isle of eee in 1980. 1. 
HEDGES : 303 
The Comma: Polygonia ‘eoliern i in N. Vereshiew, P. Q. 
f} WINTER 303 
.} The Painted Lady (Cynthia ies ese in ES ey at : Light 
1 ba LU and Other Notes on its Occurrence near Filey, Yorkshire 
fh CE in 1980. P. Q. WINTER a0) Roe das Ree So eS OH: 
© °' Current Literature { 301 
The Butterflies and Moths of Kent, Vahuine 3. . M. ‘CHALMERS. 
HUN’ . (249) 


Printed by Charles Phipps Ltd., 225 Philip Lane, Tottenham, N15 4HL 


a7 oo SY Sf 


Ta 


The Entomologist’s Record and Journal of Variation 


SPECIAL INDEX 


For British Lepidoptera this Index follows the nomenclature of A Check List of 
British Insects, Part 2 by Kloet & Hincks (1972), brought up-to-date to correspond with 
the Label List of British Butterflies & Moths by Bradley & Fletcher (1979). Where a 
contributor has used a synonym, a cross reference is given. Any newly described taxa 
(species, genera, etc.) are distinguished by bold (Times) type, and taxa new to British 
or newly recognised as British by an asterisk. Moreover, with Orders other than Lepi- 
doptera, (1) A bracketed asterisk denotes the reinstatement of a species long omitted 
‘from the British list, or the confirmaticn of one previously doubtful; (2) A formerly 
subspecific taxon raised to specific rank is treated as an addition to the fauna, but a 
correction of identity is not; and, finally (3) The “equals” sign indicates a new synonym, 
i.e. published for the first time; italics without this sign, recent synonymy that may be 


unfamiliar to many. 


Vol, 92, 1980 


PAGE 
LEPIDOPTERA 
A 
abencerrasus, Philotes ....... .- 208 
a@bdelkader, Berberia......... 209 
aetna eupithecial . 4.5 4). = 25 
absinthiata, Eupithecia 261,263 
acerbella, Epichoristodes ...... 33 
menillaena, Morpho.......... 65 
memes Monpho) <2 <<. 2 3 ec 65 
acteon, Thymelicus ...... 189,239 
Britian @MnySOGerxis. . 4 <«-. =. 29 
adippe, Argynnis . . . 35, 139, 151, 207 
cydippe 

*adjectella, Coleophora .... 129,266 
Beran MOnDNO: 5 <n .6. gesics + -icsy = 65 

aegeria, Pararge . . . 102, 139, 182, 
200, 206, 210, 239, 267 
BeratellaAugasma -......... 17) 
HephiciicyMelitacar 5... ... 2. - 209 
MPESHIS- ATICI. - 0 35.2: ss 141, 242 

aglaja, Argynnis. . . 106, 139, 151, 
198, 208 
mibicosta,;Coleophora ........ 61 
albipuncta, Mythimna . . . 90, 193, 246 
albipunctata, Cyclophora ... 150, 262 
*albonigrata = britannica, Thera . . 162 
sibulaMeranola 3 as6u 3.2 5 x 93 
micese|Carcharodus) 24... 4.54 -- 240 
meiphronwHeodes = > .- 52.5 -- 209 
Becony Maculineal . — 45.5 -45-. -- 104 
alnifoliae Coleophora ..... 129,266 
MIPICOlawNeStiay <4. fs srjodes oc: 55 
Bipium Momae 2 s25-5% 5 we wo $1 
MVCUSSPYTSUS|. = a= 2 a: =: 106, 209 
enlandasblebiculas = 44.2 = 4 0.4). 209 
amathonte, Morpho ......... 65 
ambigua, Hoplodrina......... 151 
amoricanus, Pyrgus.......... 209 
amymone, Pseudochazara..... . 281 
amachoreta, Clostera ....... 895253 
amaxibia, Morpho........... 65 
maceps, Apamea (22 55>. .. 2/6 : Syl 


PAGE 
ancromedacshViellsin anes eee 104 
anthelea, Pseudochazara...... . 242 


6259.0 106s 
154, 196, 277 


antiopa, Nymphalis 


antiguas Oreyviaee 9 5 ee DAN 4: 
apollombarnassils - ene nena ae 106 
aq atas LOT SiG ara anne 152 
arcania, Coenonympha ....... 106 
arcanioides, Coenonympha ..... 210 
ancellayATeyrestitiaeas einen ee 84 
cornella auct. 

ALCHeSIas Ee ClS ane ee 109 
areOlasonylo cam pases enero ee i15)5) 
argenteas Cuculliiam = sian nee aene i 


argentipedella, Ectoedemia . . . 69, 204 
argiolus, Celastrina . 139, 153, 206, 
209, 240, 277 


AIGA NENTS 2 c ako oc eco coc 6 
anon. Maculineayes ene ene 104, 222 
ALMIP eras ELelicOVienpam laser 90 
AntAXerXCSsy Ati Cia ane 105, 209 
antemusiellas Bucculathix =a. leanne 17 
assiniilatas Eu pitacciass i 263 
aSteniass Mellictam a ==-—=el eis 104 
astrantiae., ASOnoptenixs seers 17 


atalanta, Vanessa. . 87,189,195, 
228. 256, 258. 267. 2695 270; 303 


athaliay Mellicta = ieee eee 103, 229 
atlanticas Plebiculan se eee een: 209 
atrablastodacna = ere ae eee 85 
atropos, Acherontia 62, 90, 271 
AUcUEA Graphiphord eels neneneee $1 
aUratasievrausta: socn-) see renee 303 
auneliay Mellictaias = one 106 
aurinia, Euphydryas . 37, 140, 200, 208 
ausonia, Euchloe =... -.-- 240, 301 
AaVeLSaLerseCtaniamen cee cnenenene HUG 
aversatasidacameseanee cle eeae 189 
B 
badiipennella, Coleophora. . . 129, 266 
ballimPoeciimitiss ..). «2-9. =. = 294 
bankiana) Deltote? = 252. - 193, 210 


PAGE 
baton ehilotesse | ae ee 105,240 
beatricellayActhes sss see-ney te ore 234 
Ibellisi- sherawat eer re 162 
bellarcus,) ysandra = =92 = = --) = - 199 
betulanias BIstonges -eeae-peeees ane 70 
bifasclana., Spatalistisss)-)- = )-0e)en- WS 
bifidas BurcUlaw ee ee ene 156 
bilunaria, Selenia dentaria 55 LSS 
bimaculata, Lomographa ..... . $1 
bipunctellay Ethmiae sens ee 168 
bipunctidactyla, Stenoptilia. ... . 189 
boeticus, Lampides . 206, 210, 240, 277 
bowKerlstucetas- sent eee 1-6, 39 
brassicacs Pieris)] 4). - 4 89, 240, 279 
priseiss Ghavaranee 40s - 208, 209 
britannicayuherar cet. = 6 Ss es 162 
brookiana, Trogonoptera ..... . 98 
brunnichella, Stephensia. .....- . 17) 

C 

Gacaliae. Pyrgus}) 2s) > oe 104 
Cal AswARGUA et <1 tae aattthg ees 34, 54 


c-album, Polygonia . . 35,139,195, 
WD iis B03} 


Callidices Pontials = 2). cueneee re 104 

camilla, Ladoga... 35,151, 197, 
200, 277 

cardamines, Anthocharis 23, 122, 142, 
248, 292 


cardui, Cynthia . 87, 90, 144, 208, 
228, 240, 256, 258, 269, 303 


carmelita, Odontosia.......- Sie 235 
castigata Eupithecia subfuscata . . . 265 
catenarius, Morpho........-.-- 65 
Geceliaweyroniays ry see) n-ne ee 209 
celerio, Hippotion ........- 62, 200 
centaureata, Eupithecia ..-....- 265 
CentrazonAtethimial. ys) ee = 55 
cerasivorella, Coleophora .....- - 210 
cerisyi, Allancastria ....-.---- 240 
chalcites, Chrysodeixis. . . 62, 89,157 
chamomullae.Cuculliase =... -.- 189 
characterea, Apamea epomidion 

chenopodiata, ScotopteryX ....- 189 
chloeratas Chloroclystis==) = =: 262 
chrysorrhoea, Euproctis.....-.- 253 
ciliella, Agonopterix ....-..--- 7 
cinctania, Cleoray se eee Sil Sais 1333) 
cingovskii, Psuedochazara ....-.- - 280 
Ginxdas Melitaca = seen 106,258 
circumflexa, Syngrapha .... - 28, 89 
Cliraco, <antiial Nese are 83 
Glareaes Utetheisals ce aici) ene) ae 13 
Glavantaeylcanen (ial eee mena 279 
cleopatra, GonepteryX ..... 206, 240 
clerkella: Eyonetia 2 4. -seasee 204 
comitata, Pelurgae:o.. 5 4 eee 51 
commas Hesperia 7c) sys See 104 
Comptahladenam sean 83 
comptana;,Ancylis = 22 3 noe 84 
contusaliss| Nola sae) eee $1 
Convolvulm Acts) | iene 90, 196 


PAGE 
Coracina. .Psodos = i -eeaee eee 53 
coracipennella, Coleophora ..... 201 
conidonaleysandrame ee 22, 36, 199 
cornella, Argyresthia arcella 
coronata v-ata, Chloroclystis . ... 262 
cramera, Aricia\., 2. = 2. 4 one 207 
CraSsalis. Ely penal =) eee $1 
Crataesi. Apotiaie 4) 106, 207, 208 
Gratacer, Unichiural nese 51, 260 
crinanensis, Amphipoea ....... 128 


croceus, Colias ... 90,151, 207, 


209, 239, 246 


currucipennella, Coleophora .... 142 
curtulas Glosteray = = =) ene 154 
cynthia, Euphydryas -e-e- ee 107 
cypris, Morpho >) = eee 65 
D 
daphne, Poecilmitis .....---- 294 
daplidice, Pontia ......-- 209, 240 
debiliata, Chloroclystis ......-- Si 
debilis, Euphydnyas) ==) s) see 107 
detolianias EranniS) y-ee-aeneeenen 49, 303 
deidaema, Morpho == 3 = = ese 65 
denotata, Eupithecia...... 261, 263 
dentanias Selenta= =) -e ene 52,25 
bilunaria 
denticulella, Callisto’ - - --- = 25: 189 
diamina, Melitaea\. 2 =. =.=) -seenene 104 
diaphana, Zygaena....-.-.---- 128 
didyma, Melitaea..... 106, 208, 209 | 
diffinis, eleiopsiss = --e-5-) eee 168 
dispar, Lycaena = . . 2-2 ome 221 | 
distinctata, AIGUCISi= ssa 55 j 
dodoneata, Eupithecia......-.- - By | 
domestica, Cryphia. .-.-.-:-- 189 | 
dominula, Callimorpha ......-- 85 
dorus, Coenonympha ......-.-.- 209 
E 
ecclipsis, Papilio” > = 5-2-5 oeee 74. 
egea, Polygonia. «<=. -. -. 352 97, 241} 
elpenor, Deilephila......-.-.-- 124) 
emeritella, Depressaria. ..-..-.-- 25) 
ematginatay [daear =) -5- ene Sil 
endymion, Poecilmitis.....-...- 296 
epomidion, Apamea ........-- 51 
characterea 
ergane, Pieris: << < —-<§) sees 242 
esculi, Nordmannia.........- 207 
eumedon, Eumedonia ........- 104. 
euphorbiae, Hyles ......--.-- 89 
euphrosyne, Boloria . 34, 104, 139, 228) 
eunyale) Brebiaw.) 5) eee 103 
exclamationis, Agrotis.......- 179) 
exigua. SPOGOPtera eae enone mene 97 
expallidata, Eupithecia ... . 261, 263, 
| 
F | 
farrenis CataplectiCar:.-0 sens son 171), 


fascelina, Dasychira = 205.) - eee Sli, 


PAGE 
fascianiawiyilaca’ 4 45 sa G 90 
feisthamelii, Iphiclides.... . 208, 210 
iemneeilis, WEA 5 ee ee ea awe 90 
fidia, Pseudotergumia ..... 206, 210 
filipendulae, Zygaena ..... 189, 198 
flavimetrella, Lampronia ...... 195 
MAVOtASCIataweteDIal «4 4.1. 444. 105 
MmorellanG@atopsiliay = =... 5. ..- 166 
Huctiata xanthornoe ....... . 189 
fLotmosana. Enarmonia.......- - 84 
Maint Catocala 2. =... +2 55, 83 
Miipinania, barascotia. =... . . Ses 
fuliginosa, Phragmatobia ...... 55 
UNE ORISVANIANIA = 5. cas c1s cc. 85 
einer JES oe Bee ae ge P47 
fuscantaria, Ennomos ........ 97 
fuscocuprella, Coleophora. . . 135, 260 
fuscolimbatus, Pterophorus..... 17 
iiscUSsebapilionses. «8 a eee 99 


G 
galathea, Melanargia 57,103, 106, 
142, 189, 200, 207, 208, 209 


mecaliatae pirmocss >) sen lens a ere 189 
' gamma, Autographa . 89, 189, 251, 
258, 303 
' gardetta,Coenonympha....... 103 
peyeri, Pseudochazara --.-->-.- 281 
PIACIAISN OCUEISteeea mse ie Sake 104 
GIO MNSOSE c.g Beg GbE co eM 154 
Pnomana Laramesials= os os ee 50 
PoOdantinMOLpnhOmea= ric soe ene e 65 
goossensiata, Eupithecia’...... 263 
POLLS. ERCDIAN eae.) cee 28 renee 105 
pracillssOrtnosiai- 2.) = ses es eae 54 
eratladensiss MOL NOs s-at ce ae 65 
Prandipennis, Scythtis) |) 4 72 4. 18 
H 
halterata, Lobophora ©... =... 51 
hamza™ hymelicuse= = - + 4-02 )s ee 209 
hastata, Rheumaptera .....-. - 139 
wnecuba. Morpho 2) 24-5 - = - 65 
' helenus, Papiliorews = sc a> gana 99 
henningi Stugeta bowkeri .. . . 1-6, 40 
hepatica. Polia) 2-5 «6 ac ee 235 
hercules: sMorphoo ss 2-0-0) eee 65 
nGnoionGbhy Tui see 555 ob os 70 
hippothoe, Paleochrysophanus .. . 104 
hispidaria, Apocheima...... Sl Ni) 
whornigi, Monochroa -.......- 19/ 
[sueren elt, Laker 5S Goto a oe oe 271 


hyperantus, Aphantopus_ . 36, 106, 139 


I 


[ icarus, Polyommatus 36, 103, 142, 


18931995207, 209, 239, 257 


fCteratawEUpitneclag-ss 4 =) ene 265 
Micteritiaxanthial wee es ee 54 
imCeLtas Onthosiaieeea cme ee 155 
incongruella, Amphisbatis ..... 161 
\indigata, Eupithecia ......... 51 


‘intermedia, Euphydryas....... 104 


PAGE 
intricatay Lupithecia se ee one: 
io, Inachis > <A E 106, 141, 267, 27 
ipsilonwACtatiS=oes 2) 1 eee 89,144 
ins; eApatliae 2 see eee 24, 106, 267 
InMiPevAta Ee Upithecia eeu sens 150 
jrorella, Yponomeuta. 15 ea 138 
isodactylus: Platyptilia. ..- 22. - 248 

J 

Jaco DACA e kyit ae 25, 144 
jasius; Ghataxesice. = setae anes 242 
JCSOUS PC AZAT Se se eee 210 
UMIpeTatalw erase 24 
junoniella, Phyllonorycter...... 18 


jurtina, Maniola . 87, 106,140,170, 
189, 199, 205, 207, 208, 239, 266, 278 


K 
KnysnawZ1ZeCerlass eae 210 
knehmictia Ephestiaas serene nene 259 

L 
lacrtessMOnpiOn-aenee iene 65 
Falbum, Mythimnal: 25255 --- 94 
Janestrisseniogasten 5) 2) sone 18, 193 
lassellan@oleophordeessi tenons il 


lathonia, Argynnis ... . 106, 208, 277 


lavatherae) Carcharodus)=).)s) enone 208 
leautieri, Lithophane. . . . 18,119,151 
leporinanACrony.ctay se) = ee 238, 271 
leucographasC@erastise a | ooo 139 
hehenecaw Ee umMichtiSaaensen-aene iene 46 
hiveanireDiakee ent ee see eee 106 
Hii oOnia ete Cis nseee ee (ily 
limosipennella, Coleophora . . 129, 266 
linaniata a bupitheciamess neers 266 
lineata-WblvViless 0-7-4. cee eee 192 
lincolabdinvinelicusin= is -enentene 209 
hitoralissSpodopterays sn ee 90 
lucina, Hamearis= 2 5 2 - 141, 269, 301 
lunwlasCalophasial-n= ence enne 253 
luntlarias Scleniaa senna eee 154 
lupina, Hyponephele..... . 208, 242 
tutecllasS tiemeliageee sme ee 204 
luteolata, Opistograptis ....... 154 
lutulenta, Aporophyla........ $1 


machaon, Papilio . . 139, 206, 221, 240 

MAChAaSteLi Mubimenia 1+) sae 1, 43 
ssp. mijburghi 

maculipennis, Plutella xylostella . . 304 


maddisoni Utetheisa ......... 13 
maeray Wasiominatae-n eee) een 106 
TMAlVAC NYA CUS a uae an 141 
manuelaria, Peribatodes ....... 27 
Maritimaseliothisee-)- i 8-1-8 128 
maroccana, Hyponephele ...... 208 
mary ae 

Argyrocupha malagrida 297-300 
Maura MOLMNo! ceceelet:, = o2uerhensts 51 
megera, Lasiommata . . . 139, 206, 


208, 240, 303 


PAGE 
melampus, Erebia ..-------- 105 
mellonella, Galleria. ..------- 189 
memnon, Papilio ...--.------- 99 
menalaus, Morpho ...------- 65 
mendica, Diarsia .-.-------- 156 
messaniella, Phyllonorycter ..--- 204 
meticulosa, Phlogophora 90, 193 
microdactyla, Adaina ..------ 55 
millefoliata, Eupithecia .------ 190 
milvipennis, Coleophora . - - - 129, 266 
minimus, Cupido ...---- 141, 199 
miniosa, Orthosia. ..----- 142, 190 
minusculella, Stigmella ..-.---- 37] 
mnestra, Erebia..---------- 105 
muralis, Cryphia ...-------:- 55 
micacea, Hydraecia....------ 54 
montanata, Xanthorhoe.....-- 189 

N 

nanata, Eupithecia .......---- 262 
napaea, Boloria....-------- 103 
Mapilktenis = 25 = --b- = =" 91,103, 266 
nausithous Maculinea .....-.--- 103 
nemorella, Crambus ....-.---- 189 
nephelus, Papilio ...-------- 99 
MimitrichopleWSiay .. <caee ee ani 196 
MAS, NGI 1s caanaogesce 105 
nigricans, Poecilmitis....----- 294 
nigricella, Coleophora .....--- 201 
nigriscentella, Phyllonorycter . .. - 18 
noctuella, Nomophila 89,144,251 

258 
nodicolella, Mompha.......-.- - DS 
nubilalis, Ostrinia- == --—.- -- 90, 302 

O 

Obeliscataswlhneras se) cena 162 
OblitellawAmcylosisi: aeueec 17 
oblonga, Apamea.-.--.-----:- 150 
obscurana, Pammene.......-- - 259 
obscuratus, Gnophos......-.-.-- 279 
obstipata, Orthonama .....- - 62, 303 
OCCUliA WE UnOISH =e ieee 90 
Ocellanise x anitliiawsee eee 54 
ocellatella, Scrobipalpa ......-- 248 
ochroleuca, Eremobia ....- - Sil, Ze 
OCtAVIaN Ee CISaeen secre nnn i114 
KOMP, WEUNE as oe 6 65 ane ae 51 
oditis, Leucochlaena...-....--- 300 
GO, IDIOICR socsn Ss obo aoeoe 83 
opima, Orthosia -----.--.- >- 83 
optilete, Vacciniina ....----- 105 


orbicularia, Cyclophora pendularia . 262 
orbitulus, Albulina ~= = ----- - - 104 
orichalcea, Diachrysia ...-...-- 200 
ornitopus, Lithophane . 51, 53, 142, 303 


P 
palaemon, Carterocephalus . . 104, 292 
palaecnom@oliasiey smn ec 108 
paleanaseApheliaer- 92s )-nene ces 161 
pales;Boloriag®s ce = <7. 103 
pallidactyla, Platyptilia .......- 85 


pamphilus, Coenonympha 198, 209, 241 


PAGE 
panageéa, [uranana) > 2-4 -o-5> ee 241 
pandora, Pandoriana . . . 207, 208, 242 
pandrose, Erebia. - > = -as-uoeeee 104 
paphia, Argynnis . . . 34, 139, 151,277 
Patvas EU b lenin alee neee eee ee 260 
pastinim, Lygephila ......--.- 51 
patroculus,Morpho ......-.--. 65 
pavonia, Saturnia ©. . 2 = -)- ee ile WHS 
peleides, Morpho:. . . 2. = sy epeeee 65 
peltigera, Heliothis .... - 93,144, 193 
pendularia, Cyclophora albipunctata 262 
pendularia, Cylophora.....- - Sil, Ao? 

orbicularia 

perlella.\Crambus - > 72 == eam 189 


perlepidella, Digitivalva ......-- 97 
perlucidalis, Eurrhypara . . 17, 87, 154 
perseus, Morpho 65 


pharte, Erebia . - = - = = - =) yee 105 
phicomone, Colias ..-..----.- 103 
phlaeas, Lycaena...- - 142, 207, 240 
phoebe, Melitaea ...-------- 104 
phoebus, Parnassius ...------ 104 
phoeniceata, Eupithecia ..-- - 29, 274 


pimpinellata, Eupithecia . 261, 263, 264 
pirithous, Syntarucus 210, 242 
plantaginis, Parasemia ...---- - 156 


plecta, Ochropleura ...-.----- 155 
plexippus, Danaus ...----- 62, 89 
pluto, Erebia) 2-12. - -i-s-seecmene 104 


podalirius, Iphiclides..-.-..---. 240 
polychloros, Nymphalis . 
polyphemus, Morpho 


pomella, Stigmella ....------ 161 | 
populeti, Orthosia 51,54, 139, 142,150 
portis, Morpho ...-..-------; 65 
potatoria, Philudoria...--.-.--- 54 
prasinana, Benai- =. = = = 9-4 279 
promissa, Catocala...-.---.- 51, 83 
proto, Muschampta ...-.-- - 206, 210 
pruni, Strymonidia....------ 238 
*prunifoliae, Coleophora . .- - 201, 282 jj 
psylorita, Kretana .--------- 242 
pudibunda, Dasychira ...----- 271 
pudorina, Mythimna.....-.- Sil, 150 
pulchellata, Eupithecia ...---- 265 | 
pulchelloides Utetheisa ...---- 13 | 
pulveraria, Plagodis....------ 51 
pumilata, Gymnoscelis rufifasciata . 262 
pumilio, Gegenes ...-------- 242 
punctifera, Lysandra...--- 207, 209 
punctistrigella, Homoeosoma - . . - 185 
purpuralis, Zygaena ..------- 198 
pusillata, Eupithecia ....-.--- 144 | 
puta, Agrotis’ 92... = - <> ewe 8 
pyralina, Cosmia ..------- 51,272 | 
pyramus, Poecilmitis...------ 297 
quadra, Withosiayes i. ene 90. 
quercifolia, Gastropacha.....-.- - 54 
quercus, Lasiocampa...-.-.-.- - 54 


quercus, Quercusia . . . . 139, 242, 268 


PAGE 
R 

MAPAC MRICS) ces Erle cee 91, 207, 239 
NVA, S\OREKOIIS 5 oo 4 5 oon ek 279 
nace, OWA ss oo be ac 156, 224 
rectangulata, Chloroclystis ..... 262 
Racing, ISIN) sb 660464850 83 
nega, AMINO oo so0 66500 6 85 
RAVAN AML, INNVCIGOIRY 5 5.55 6 66m 0 c 5 

reynoldsi 
ssp. stugseta subinfuscata =... . 1-5 


rhamni,Gonepteryx . . 74,139,194, 272 


MASUWEMOIR; MIGNON) oo 05 oo 2 oc 65 
rhododactyla, Cnaemidophorus .. 102 
MOOT. ORIN) & 5 oo ob aoe - 51 
nuUomCallophrysm eee. ee 139s 
LUbicinatas blemiyniae eee. see Sl 
RU ISInNcas COnisirals <n) ene $1 
mUllrnGoe, CERIN 6 654550666 « 155 
TUMCORNISSOTymoniae . . .- 555279 
rufifasciata, Gymnoscelis ...... 262 
pumilata 

RUMMICISSACONICta ss epee emer 54 
nussiaeyMelananeiaeis eee 198 


S 
sacraria, Rhodometra. 62,198,200, 
242, 248, 259, 303 


sadhopullensis Homoeosoma 184 
Salamoniss Utetheisams sans) ene 13 
CAIs, ILEUICOMNNY s5 5 5 0 Sil Sil, A458) 
SAMMI), IDIAGMSIA 6 5556 o 50006 5 
CRNA), JEON 55 6 55 5 oc 265 
MUGS enGliOnme . 2. e5o605006 91 
scabriuscula, Dypterygia....... 51 
ScolapacinasyApanilea = seen nace 3) 
Scolidetonmiss Gonopiai esa eee 83 
scopariella, Agonopterix....... 1911 
CEGSUINNS ANSTO 5545000500 - 117 


selemes Bolom 55.555. 3)5)5 11S), Ske 
semele, Hipparchia . 


Semlareuss Gyalnitisie aoe ne 104, 209 
semibrunnea, Lithophane .. . . 51, 150 
semifascia, Caloptilia. .... Seen nro HY 
Senatellam Coleophora nests nenene 133 
SemaAWlhes PWTBUG. 5 cop oon oc 104 
SSRUOIMIS, SOMITE, . 5c 5 oc ooo ec 207 
Sexalatas bteraphenapteny.x. sen 161 
Siccifoliay Coleophoral eile eee 220 
Sinmpliciata, eUpithe cian lieleenene 3) 

simulans, Rhyacia . 94, 193, 242, 
250, 279 

sinapis, Leptidea . . 106, 139, 241, 
267 
Singlaes NCOmISChia yee i enenen-nene D5] 
Ci SAUNMUS 5 5 oo co ao oo 281 


socia, Lithophane 


sSolandrianas Epinotiay = 454 4- 33 
sororcula, Eilema... . Sil, WSC 
Goan, AGING .50o6000506 7 
Spatganii. Archanaral eee en $1 
Spina stnyaomidial = els ennai enenene 206 
spiniella, Paraswammerdamia ... . 132 
spinosella, Ectoedemia . 132 


Sponsas|Catocalauiee-a 1 eaneeen nee 83 


PAGE 
StabilisnO@xthosiase ae eee 49 
Stagnana) Giniseldal asst meen eee 84 
StatiGes Ad Scita ame sean ee 140 


stellatarum, Macroglossum 90, 194, 208 


SiiemiatarO te tie! sclm= are 14 
Stragulatasdilteral: es seen 162 
Sumrimigaia, WA 5 yo 5 eo A  o 5) 
SirataniassBIStOni oan nee neen nee 70 
SI, MIGEANOIE, 544556006 28 156 
subbimaculella, Ectoedemia. ... . Sy) 
Subtullyvataew Upithe ial 265 
Subiuscatas Ee upithecia ec lensnee 265 
castigata 

subintuscata stupetal lees eae 1-5 
SUbLUStHISSApalleda- = lene 51 
SUbGUSa si pinonp har enei eel eee Si 
subumbrata, Eupitheciay-) 6-2). 265 
succenturiata, Eupithecia ...... 51 
sulkowskij/Morphoras seen 65 
SyilvaitaseAlb raid Sie see 279 


sylvestraria, Idaea 


sylvestris, Thymelicus . . 141, 189, 


T 
TABS, LING os G5 6 6 ao oo a Ge 141 
tearei, Stugeta bowkeri ..... 1-6, 38 
(elles, IMBICLININGA 5 22 po oa 103 
telimessia, Weiiolky so. 5500086 7 
SIMUL, IEWOINSCTA 2 co 6 oo 8c Sl 
iGrSAtal, IOS 550055050055 $1 
HESS, INFWANCA Gs 55 6 5 5 oo 3 113 
THeoplirastuss WakaCuSienes selene 210 
liners, OW 5 55 5 5 o- 241, 242 
LHeSeUSs MOT pNOn =nemeneie el aenenene 65 
thores Clossianalmes wena eee 107 
thyrsis, Coenonympha........ 239 
tiysbeshoccilmitisi=s-nsenenenene 40, 294 
tisiphone, 280 
Pseudochazara cingovskii 
titania Glossianasen easier neEe 108 
tithonus, Pyronia..... 139, 170, 189 
OMAN, MENON) oo oc ee aoe 54 
WOomvel, IN@Wocloimliz, 5 soc oo boo 89 
tTAntSVierSataw knit ener es -me semen meme $1 
ae, MEGA cco cece oe 189 
friceninatass da Calls si Erne mcme Si 
trigeminella, Coleophora ... 113,129 
tripunctaria, Eupithecia ....... 264 
trisionanias EU pithe cian lene enone 261 
tnistellaw Aer lilay sere eee 189 
ELOCH YIU swore yenlaleel. yeni 241 
tUllias Coenonymphal es eee 170 
(Wwhanee, Regenbrtins 5.6 coo oa ec 40 
MNGhRUG IB 5 soo go co cor 105 
U 
ugandensis Precis archesia . . . 109, 198 
linaneulatasy Up iVydaleerts cee ene 5) 
orbs, BYORI 64 465 Bo oe 51 
unculanas ANGyliss sa ees = 84 
Unionalissbalpitaseene sae cacu- 95, 218 
unipuncta, Mythimna ...... 62, 303 
UnitanassApheliaier ey ea =o 161 


Vi 


PAGE 
urticae, Aglais. ... . 3355 7/5 WSS 
241, 258) 260, 267, 269, 270, 272 
Uiniicne., Syllonemn o5¢656 5555 151 
Vv 
Valentanatasupithecia = 14-06) see 264 
Vali aitaembihe ralu siya rear nein ay ce 162 
Veaitan ChlonrochyStisiems iene enn 262 
vaucheri, Coenonympha...... . 208 
wena, OWMOGles . 25550605080 142 
WENOKAIA, IIMPMEINETA ooo oe oo oe 262 
Venustulas Elaphtiassss-ie)- ene ene 51 
versicoloray Endromis)..5.. 22. 18, 235 
VESHICTAlIS WA DTOUISH sc -peemeer = ene ces $1 
WillicatwATCtlaacae sete peer ace coer 54 
Winwilh, Caw» os 5 bos A Bo 8 oc 270 
violaceay COLCOpPhOnalewenscien an ee 220 
VinetatawAGaSiSncss cau a cee. Syl 
Wine, IHIGOCES soc 5 5 aoe 6 6 106 
Virgaureata, Eupithecia ....... 261 
Vitalbatahlonsme! 9). 45 405 46 Sil Sy 
vitellina, Mythimna ....... 62, 89 
VitneasmVOnpMOm i eueeee ae cue) ace 65 
Wil Sata eupitheciary selene elena: 265 
Wanilorineine, IGA 56 om coo a a0 & 31 
W 
w-album, Strymonidia ... 6,141, 
153, 200, 254, 277 
wykehami, Poecilmitis. ...... 1, 40 
X 
ANE NG POIMEL, WEN 5560656 ¢ 300 
local, elk) 56.5565 ob coe 304 
maculipennis 
Y 
Womillom, inet) 5656550505500 Sl 
Z 
ZONatiawley.Clawark a =. Swe s saree y 259 
COLEOPTERA 
Ablattaria, see Silpha. 
Acupalpusiconsputus) 45. 45-0: 247 
AMMAN PIONS 6555060580506 247 
Ampedus, see Elater. 
ANTONIS HO WOKS Gs5650506 566 WAT 


Arhopalus, see Criocephalus. 
Bembidion assimile, doris, ephippium, 
minimum, nigricorne, varium . 247 


Bledius spectabilis, unicornis .... 248 
Caenopsis fssirostris 4 6-5 54 178 
Wilton owas es 5 60s 178-9 
Calosomarschayenimee 460 oe 223 
Carabusigranullatusiess as ous oe 291 
Cardiophorusyasellussene so ee Dy) 
@ercyontal nies 213, 214 
convexiusculus ... 214, 215 
(G)ieranayisie eee 211-5 
STEIN ali Sewers 4 ecw 214 
Ceuthorhynchidius dawsoni. . . . 177-8 


PAGE 
Ceuthorhynchus quercicola, 
tine 5 odo oo do 178 
Ghrysolinalpolitases- sles 291 
Glytuslanictis nan eee 52, 190 
Criocephalusrusticus ........ 52 
Gurculiommi cumin nee 178 
Cylindrinotus laevioctostriatus .. . 275 
Dermestestlandaniusis. eens 291 
Donacia aquatica,impressa,thalassina 12 
bicolora, cinerea ... 10,11 
@Gbyajres goac06 < 
crassipes, obscura. ... . 11 
Gentataeseneee 10,12 
marginata, | semicuprea, 
simplex, vulgaris . 9, 11 
Spaleaniiie ene 
Dorcus parallelipipedus ....... 275 
Dy schiniusswedersiv-eeeaeaeneenene 247 
Dytiscus marginalis, semisulcatus. . 244 
Elatencinnabaninu sissies nae S72 
SWISS 6 ho 6 bo bo bo soo 50 
Endomychus coccineus ....... 291 
Gymnetron antirrhini ........ 179 
GYrinUS:Sp:., <, oo. ees oe Cee 228 
Helopsicacnuleussass sara 275-6 
Judolia (as Pachytodes) 
Cerambycilonmiss ease enenenene Sy 
Laemophloeus, see Leptophloeus 
Leptophloeus clematidis. ..... 120-1 
Leptura, see Strangalia 
IeWCans7CenvillS seman eee 244 
Macroplea’ -:. 0% 4s. ee-a eee eee ES 2 
TIONG Cea Os 
Magdalis phlegmatica ........ 177 
Malachius:barnevalletesnssss seen 247 
Melandrya caraboides ........ $2 
Meloe violaceulsias) senna nae 250 


Mycetophagus quadripustulatus .. 291 
Nacerdes melanura (melanus, error) 277 


Otiorhynchus desertus........ 176 

Oulimnius *major, troglodytes ... 248 

Pachytodes, see Judolia 

Phloiotrya vaudoueri......... 153 

Plateumaris| braccataas). 0s semen 10 
Giscolonmeenenene CEN Wilts 
SEniC Cas ey ee a ee 9,11 

Platystethus cornutus, nitens, 

NOGiiiONS nee eee 247 
Platystomustalbini'sise eee 52 
Pogonus chalceus, littoralis, luridipennis 

247 

Polydrusus chrysomela ...... 176-7 
flAVIP ESS eons ae ch ce ee 177 

Prionus coriarius . . 244 
Pterostichus angustatus ....... 74 
MORGNGIUS 5 bo oo ee sos 243 

SCLENUUS ie eet eee ene 247 
EYTOCHTOaICOCGIne all een ne nene 32 
SehraiticOnnS\ snes eee By, 9) 
Pyrrhidium sanguineum ....... 52) 
IRIAN ONONORD. 5 5 pc oe 52 
Rhynchaenus stigma ......... 177 
Silphavlacvicatae nessa eee 247 


Sitona ambiguus, lineellus. .... . 179 


PAGE 
Stenocorus meridianus........ 52 
Stenolophus mixtuss) se ee 247 
Stenus boops, canaliculatus, 
CMM TIOMIIN 5 5 645605 c 247 
Strangalia (as Leptura) maculata, 
melanura, quadrifasciata. ... 52 
Thanasimus formicarius .. . . 290, 291 
irachodesihispidus= = =. 25. 4. 77 
Trachyphloeus aristatus, 
DitOVveolatus a. =. cre 176 
laticollistaseseaene aye ae 178 
inichiusiiasciatuisiass = ele ae. ole Sy 
Xestobium rufovillosum....... 291 
MOVOCle pies bISPINUS) 46 a cueee ae 120 
DERMAPTERA 
ANHOSENENGRBI Go 5 co oe oa eee G 172 
Auchenomus javanus, setulosus. . . 174 
Brachylabis collinsi ........ 172-3 
Epilandexab univ ci ee) a eee 17/3} 
Forficula auricularia .. . 183, 189, 291 
Gonolabisioblitay Se-0. es). 173 
PATI AX AS CAC Reese i ES ete lates 175 
Irdex chapmani, nitidipennis,. . . . 174 
bicuneatus, gracilis, philipensis, 
py eteratuiss stellayss eee eee 175 
MabtarminOtes -saec. + a-.ceae ce ee 183 
atapentcomius|sp ss ciency nene 173-4 
MOOMEGINAS 6 6655006 174 
DICTUOPTERA 
(Nomenclature only) 
Meucophacamaderae= 45 2 70 - 77-80 
Ranchloraeee aero 77-80 
Pycnoscelus surinamensis .... . 77-80 
Riniviparo bial. ae 2 one ot eee 77-80 
DIPTERA 
ANGLO IMINO 5 6 op oo se op oe 245 
Cheilosia albitarsis, antiqua ..... 116 
albipila, grossa LIS), JOG 
fraterna, pagana .... 114-7 
maculata, see Portevinia 
scurellatagesu aio eee ae 114 
semifasciata, variabilis . . 116 
@hiysopasten sass oo) oct as 145-6 
Chalybeatalsse eae 145, 147, 148 
line 6 6 Ge 145, 146, 148, 149 
Meacquartive ea see 147, 148, 149 
solstitialis .. . 145, 146, 147, 149 


viduata. . 145, 146, 147, 148, 149 


virescens... . 146, 147, 148, 149 
Ghrysopilusj@ureusms se eee oo 190 
(Civ Mojo CAEOUINENS 55 o0 55006 246 

pictus (viduatus ,quadratus) 245 
Glinoceraistacnalismeaeaee nen none 191 
Ctenophoraormatay eee enon: 245 
Dithnycarcuiitullari Sian eeneneen 190 
Elisratis (?Eristalis) vinetorum ... 76 
Epitriptus cine wlatusyss-s einen 190 
uppoboscaleq Winds liane seen 246 
Hybomitra distinguenda....... 245 
Wasiopogonicinctuse se seeeaenor 50 


Lejogaster: .°...geareeee ace eee 145 


PAGE 
Meigenia dorsalis, mutabilis .... . 192 
Metasyrphus latifasciatus ...... 190 
Neocnemodon *brevidens...... 45-6 
Oesinusiovise a a ae ee 190 
Ornithomyia avicularia ....... 246 
Onthonevray oo. ee 145 
brevicornis, splendens 145, 146 
Ronlevinialmaculata = neers oe 116 
Rhabdophagalsalicisi. saan oe 250 
Spilomyia hannitiera, a sewer 76 
Stenepteryx hirundinis.’ 2) 2). : 246 
Stil ponies 26-7 
SWAN fOOWONS ooo oo eo eS 190 
Dabanustautummalisss - 0s ee enene 246 
bovinus, bromius, miki, 
sudeticus; ss ay: See 245 
iiherevacniobilitataaes lean nee 251 
Pephritissvespentinase- eran 190 
Wraphorasjaceana a) sae enn 190 
Wiedemanmniaslotayesssneeeneee 191-2 
WVolucellayzonaniasesey nen ene een 246 


HEMIPTERA (incl. HOMOPTERA) 


Aphrodesmmakarovil = cae 190 
Caloconsmonvecicuste siete 190 
Gansuscalten Oe ysyeure m= cx teen 190 
Centrotus COnnutUsi ieee 243 


Cona, see Ugyops 
Euscelis (Euxelis, error) lineolatus . 190 


Gerristspe Sick. see ceaks Alo ee cee 228 
My oconsicimicoides) 41.) 41. eae 228 
edrayaltita. s.r ee eee 243 
Meptopteradolabratar en) -senene 190 
INBISISTHUROSNG 562554 0canae- 190 
Philaenus spumarius ...... 190, 291 
PhydoContsivaripes sneer nner 190 
Ranatnanlineanl Sis ne neal meen 228 
Stenotus|ibinotatusyees see enews 190 
Ugyops caelatus, pelorus ...... 76 
HYMENOPTERA 
ANOWMAGIMIGH 5 5666550088508 76 
Bombus lucorum, pascuorum vulgus 190 
Colletesidavicsanuisi-aee-n-s Caen 190 
Doleniisiaenews =o -5)-5 5 os chon 250 


gonager V. flavitibia, 

liogaster V. grayi, picipes 

(brevitarsis), willoughbyi 216 
Dolichovespula arenaria -...... 76 


Buuratatrage & eas on 2 cee eee 250 
Hoplocampa chrysorrhoea .... . PAF) 
MasilsisppmdcCa(Tey.) ey-n-n enero 56 
HUIS INO SUS acne eee 160 
Lygaeonematus breadalbanensis, 
coactulus! 4-26 
Mellinustanvensisiss): cnc nena 190 
Metals: cium aimee 216-7 
Myrmica hirsuta, lobicornis, 
Schlenckit sey oO 
Pachynematus albipennis ...... 218 
clitellatus, sulcatus . . . . 47-8 
Pontania arcticornis, pustulator NY 
crassipes . 249- 250 


Viii 


PAGE 
Pristiphora pseudocoactula ... . 217-8 
staudingeri .. 218 
Sifolinary ss teen ts oe es Ae 56 
iienthredoymesomelaswae ee eee PAY 
Wirocenusicicas sesiee see eee 244 
WESC GHIDNG) ooo gon 4554648 244-5 
NEUROPTERA 
Osmylus fulvicephalus........ 243 
Raphidia (?maculicollis) . . . . 290, 291 
iNOUWAEH 5 555 ¢ 243 
ODONATA 
ANOS NA CAEMUIIEE, 5 s6e 6 onc 5 oc 282 
mixta 258 
Cordulegaster boltonii] =]. == 2 5: 282 
Oxey cas tralcuntiSiites= si sien cence 118-9 
Somatochloraranctica )a)-)-1-earae 258 
ORTHOPTERA 

ING NSA COMNENSCN 54650050556 291 

Chorthippus brunneus, 
RINNE o 50 5 Bo omc 190, 191 


PAGE 
@onocephalus/discolotei4)- ener 191 
Gomphocerippusicufuss |) eee ST 
Metrioptera roeselii f. diluta . 46 
Pholidoptera griseoaptera ...... 191 
Platycleis albopunctata f. falcata . . 191 
Schistocercass ese. oe eee 255 
Metrxsundulatassse nee 250 
PHASMIDA 
Baculumvextradentatumees eae 181 
Carausilssmorosusee] eee 181 
Extatosomaltiaratuni ssssensenee 180-1 
PSOCOPTERA 
Badonneliagtiteie: eae 123-4 
Eiposcelisisimulansi) ae 124 
TRICHOPTERA 
Hydroptila martini, occulta . . . . 167-8 
Valesiaca - 2. 167 
Phrycaneatspaess 9a eee eee 227 


CORRIGENDA. — The following misprints require correction: — Page 27, line 12, 
for nublilus read nubilus;, line 14, for ‘makings’ read ‘making’. Page 153, line 7 should 


begin ‘however, that’. — A. A. Allen. 


Printed by Frowde & Co. (Printers) Ltd., London, SE5 8RR 


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